


Ready and Willing

by AvatarAbby



Category: She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018)
Genre: Canon Compliant, Domestic Fluff, F/F, F/M, Family, Fluff, Kid Fic, Post-Canon, Pregnancy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-27
Updated: 2020-12-13
Packaged: 2021-03-06 07:48:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 21
Words: 36,069
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25539787
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AvatarAbby/pseuds/AvatarAbby
Summary: Catra and Adora decide that they are ready to start a family.A continuation of “Just Like We’d Always Planned,” but can be read as a stand-alone.
Relationships: Adora/Catra (She-Ra), Bow/Glimmer (She-Ra), Catra & Glimmer (She-Ra), Perfuma/Scorpia (She-Ra)
Comments: 170
Kudos: 481
Collections: She-Ra





	1. Without A Doubt

Catra knocked on Glimmer’s bedroom door and immediately regretted it. This was such a stupid idea, a fantasy she had that would be a nightmare in the real world. It’s not like Adora was having the same thoughts as she was, so what was the point in wasting her friend’s valuable time.  
Just as she was starting to walk away, the familiar sound of teleportation filled her ears and a very pregnant Glimmer was suddenly standing before her.  
“Should you even be doing that,” Catra questioned, raising an eyebrow.  
The queen rolled her eyes in complete annoyance. “You sound just like Bow. ‘You’re already in the second trimester, maybe you should start taking it easy. This is your first pregnancy, after all. Do you want me to carry you?’ But I can tale care of myself and my baby. Now, did you knock on my door just to annoy me, or did you actually need something?”  
The brunette’s ears drooped as she blushed in embarrassment. “I... I wanted to ask you about something. But if you’re busy, then don’t worry about it.”  
“Nah, I’ve got a light workload today. In fact, I was just gonna go downstairs to get a snack. Care to join me?”  
In too deep now, the part-feline walked in silence with the other woman all the way to the kitchen.  
“So,” the sorceress said as she reached for and opened a container of peanut butter cookies, “what is it that you wanted to ask me?”  
The more Catra thought about it, the more she realized how stupid she was for even thinking that this conversation would turn out well for her. “You know, it’s not really a big deal, I’m sorry I even brought it up. I’ll leave you to your cookies now.”  
In a second flat, Glimmer’s hand was wrapped tightly around the other’s hand to keep her from leaving. “Don’t lie to me. You have that look on your face.”  
“What look?”  
“The ‘I really want to talk about or do something but I’m scared everyone will be mad or make fun of me for it’ look. I’m not gonna judge you, Catra. If it’s important to you than it’s important to me. All you have to do is ask.”  
The former Horde leader closed her eyes and took a few deep breathes. “You know a lot about magic, right?”  
The ruler of Brightmoon blinked at the question’s simplicity and obvious answer. “I do.”  
“So... hypothetically speaking of course, if I wanted to have a baby with Adora, how exactly would her and I go about that?”  
The second she digested the question’s implication, Glimmer was squealing in a high-pitched tone, jumping up and down all over the room, which looked absolutely hilarious with her huge belly.   
“Are you serious? This is amazing- I didn’t even know you and her were thinking about kids!”  
“Well, that’s the thing,” the part-feline said as she nervously scratched the back of her head. “We haven’t really talked about it.”  
“Wait...what? Catra, are you telling me that I just got all excited over nothing!”  
“Well, several years ago we both agreed it was something we were definitely interested in, and you and Bow about to have a baby has gotten me thinking about it more. But I haven’t had an actual conversation about it with Adora yet.”  
“Then don’t you think that’s something you should do before you go talking to me about creating magical babies?”  
“It’s not like I’m planning to do anything yet. I just want to know all the facts so that way when I do talk to her, I have some sort of an idea about what I’m suggesting we get ourselves into.”  
“Wow,” the multicolored haired woman said with a smirk, “that is such a Mom thing to do.”   
The part-feline clutched her fist at her side in annoyance. “Can you just answer the question, Sparkles?”  
“It actually isn’t all that complicated. Whoever wanted to carry the baby would have to drink a special potion everyday until you guys conceived, but other than that, it’s simply a matter of you guys trying like any other couple.”  
“But one of us would get pregnant?”  
“Yeah,” the queen said, instinctively placing a hand on her baby bump.   
The part-feline couldn’t help but stare at her friend’s round belly. It was crazy to think that a whole new person was growing inside there, getting ready to come out and make it’s mark on the world. That thought was so terrifying, yet at the same time exciting. In just a few short months, Glimmer and Bow were going to officially be parents, raising a beautiful child together. And as much as she had tried to deny it these past few months, she wanted to have that experience with Adora.  
She just had to make sure that her wife wanted that too.  
————————————————————  
By the time Adora came home, it was dark outside.  
“Sorry I’m back so late,” the blonde said as she slipped into bed with her spouse, “the kids insisted we finish the game we were playing, even after their parents got back from their date night.”  
“No worries. How are Willow and Elysia?”  
“Just as rambunctious as ever. Say, did you know that Scorpia and Perfuma were thinking about having more kids?”  
Catra’s raised an eyebrow. “You’re kidding, right?”  
“Just before I left, they said something about wanting to ensure that they have ‘five little scorpions,’ whatever that means. But hey, more power to them. They’re great moms already, and they’re gonna be great moms to any other kids they bring into their family.”  
The part-feline didn’t respond, getting up the nerve to start the conversation she’d been wanting to have for a long time. This was a perfect segue. They were already on the topic of kids, meaning all she had to do was gently steer the conversation to were she wanted it to go. But she just couldn’t seem to do it.  
“Hey,” the First One said, pulling the other from her thoughts, “you doing okay?”  
The brunette bit her lip, glancing towards the love of her life. “I have something I want to talk to you about, but I’m worried you won’t feel about it the same way I do.”  
“I mean, there is a chance that’ll happen, but you’ll never know until you say something. And promise that I’ll listen to whatever it is you have to say, and we can find a solution together.” After a few minutes of silence, the embodiment of She-ra prodded, “Catra?”  
“I want to have a baby,” she said quickly, not allowing herself anytime to talk herself out of it. “With you.”  
Adora’s eyes went wide and stayed like that for a full minute, making Catra increasingly uncomfortable.  
“Is that...is that okay?”   
The blonde seemed to snap back into reality at those words. “Of course it’s okay. I would be lying if I said I hadn’t been thinking the same thing these past few months. I just wasn’t sure if it was something you wanted.”  
“I had told you before that I did.”  
“Yeah, but that was so long ago, and it was all hypothetical. Us actively trying to have a child, that’s concrete, real. And I didn’t want to put any pressure on you.”  
“So, you’re telling me that we’ve been having the exact same wants and fears for months now, but we were just too nervous to actually sit the other person down and talk about it?”  
“Seems like it.”  
“Stars, we really are idiots. We will definitely have to work on our communication skills before the baby arrives.”  
“But,” the First One interjected, a hint of hope in her voice, “we are gonna start trying for one?”  
Catra smiled widely, “I’m willing if you are.”  
“Yes,” her wife exclaimed, wrapping her arms around the other woman. “A thousand times yes!”  
The part-feline leaned into the others touch for a moment, then pulled away. “But I have something more I want to say.”  
“Hit me.”  
“I want to be the one to carry the baby. If your okay with it.”  
“I’d be okay with that,” the blonde answered honestly. “I just never imagined you would want to. I know how much you value your independence, and we’ve both witnessed how much unwanted attention Glimmer’s been getting ever since she got pregnant.”  
“I know, and I honestly don’t think I would’ve even wanted to do it a few years ago. But the more I think about it, the more I realize that I do want to have that experience. To feel the kicks everyday and know that that’s our kid on it’s way.”  
Adora gave her wife a long, loving look. “You’re gonna be an amazing mom.”  
“And so are you, without a doubt.”  
————————————————————  
“Okay,” Glimmer said as she handed Catra a glass filled with green liquid, “I followed the recipe Aunt Casta sent me down to the letter. Here is the first batch of your daily potion.”  
The part-feline took a tiny sip of the drink, then gagged. “This is the most disgusting thing I’ve ever tasted. And I used to eat ration bars everyday.”  
The queen gave a small snort. “Just wait until morning sickness kicks in. You’ll be begging for this stuff back.”  
Adora looked over at her wife, concerned at her reaction. “You don’t have to do this if you don’t want to. I’d be perfectly okay with carrying our baby.”  
“I know, and I appreciate that. But like I said, last night, I’m ready and willing to do this. Even if it means I’ll be drinking this awful concoction every morning.”  
“I just hope you’re ready for overprotective Adora,” the sorceress chimed in. “Bow’s bad enough, I can’t imagine dealing with a concerned spouse that can turn into an eight-foot tall warrior.”  
The First One shrugged. “It’s true. I’m going to be relentless.”  
Catra smiled, genuinely excited for the future ahead for her family. “I can’t wait.”  



	2. It’s Gonna Happen For Us

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> One year after the events of the previous chapter, Catra and Adora are having a hard time with the fact that they aren’t pregnant yet.

“And then,” Adora said to her wife on the screen, her excitement building with each word she said, “the people of Amphitrite did this really cool dance while controlling water, making it move all over the banquet hall!”  
“Water flying everywhere,” Catra stated with an eyebrow raised. “I’m guessing it was a good idea I decided not to tag along then.”  
“Yeah,” the blonde said, trying to hide the disappointment in her voice, “probably. But me and Bow are having a really good time! There’s been some sort of party every night.”  
“And we all know how much you love those.”  
The First One watched as the part-feline rubbed her eyes, obviously looking tired and upset.  
“Hey. Are you doing okay?”  
“I’m fine,” she replied, obviously lying. “Ella’s still getting over that stomach bug, so I’ve been helping with her a lot.”  
The embodiment of She-ra knew that that wasn’t the only thing bothering the love of her life. “It’s gonna happen for us, y’know?”  
“Getting a stomach bug,” Catra questioned jokingly. “Because I think I’ve-“  
“Catra. It’s okay to be disappointed.”  
“I know that. In fact, it seems like that’s all I’ve been feeling lately.”  
The two hadn’t expected anything to happen overnight. Getting pregnant could take time, they both know that. And for the first few weeks, nothing could shatter the enthusiasm they shared. But weeks turned into months, and now months had turned into a whole year. A year filled with false alarms and false hope, filled with newborns and babysitting other people’s kids while they had none of their own. And it was obviously taking a toll on Catra.  
Adora tried to assure her that this was not a reflection of them in any way. That this was common for a lot of couples. But that didn’t make it any harder to endure, for either of them.  
“I meant what I said before I left,” the embodiment of She-ra started. “If you want to stop, if this is too much right now, just say the word. There are other ways we can be a family, and my love for you will never change, kids or no kids.”  
The woman sighed. “I need to think about it. It feels like a big decision either way. To keep trying seems like an insane thing to do when we’ve had no success whatsoever. And to stop means acknowledging it was doomed from the start.”  
“It wasn’t doomed from the start. Even if this whole process doesn’t end the way we wanted it to, that doesn’t mean it wasn’t worth giving it a try.”  
Catra shook her head back and forth. “It was a stupid idea.”  
Before the First One could object, a shattering cry came from the screen.  
“That’s Ella,” the brunette said, though her partner had already figured that out for herself. “I’m gonna go see if Glimmer needs any help. I’ll see you in a few days.”  
“I can come back sooner if you want me to.”  
“No. I need to be alone right now.”  
Adora wanted to protest and insist she was leaving Amphitrite that instant. But she didn’t know if that really was the right thing to do. This whole process was new for her too. And if Catra said she needed time to think by herself, then she had to respect that.  
“Okay. I love you.”  
“Love you too,” the former Horde leader replied back, then quickly ended the call.  
————————————————————  
“It’s okay,” Glimmer cooed as she cradled her daughter, trying to get her to stop crying. “You’re okay.”  
“I think the fact that she won’t stop crying is her way of indicating to you that she’s not okay.”  
The queen looked to the doorway of the nursery to see Catra leaning in the doorway, trying her best to look composed. But, despite her best efforts, she looked like she’d just been run over by a dozen Horde tanks. She had dark circles under her bloodshot eyes. It shouldn’t have been such a surprise- the woman had been passing on sleep and skipping meals for a while now. But it seemed to have gotten even worse since Adora had left a few days ago.  
“How is Sparkles Jr. doing,” the part-feline asked tentatively.  
“Her fever’s gone. And she slept through most of the night.”  
“Those are all good signs.”  
“Yeah, I think she’s doing good,” the sorceress replied once she had placed the baby back in the crib and approached her friend. “Can’t say I feel the same way about you though.”  
The brunette’s ears twitched anxiously. “What are you talking about?”  
“Catra, what’s going on? You look pale and fatigued. And you’ve obviously been crying.”  
The woman ran a hand through her hair in frustration. “Listen, I really can’t do this right now. I just got done with a really exhausting conversation with Adora, and that stupid potion you’ve been making me take everyday is giving me nausea and a headache, and the last thing I need is for you to remind me how much of a screwup I am.”  
“I wasn’t trying to insult you, Catra. But you have to take care of yourself. And those symptoms your exhibiting- the nausea, the headache, the fatigue? Those are all the things that were happening to me while I was carrying Ella. Haven’t you considered the possibility that you might be-“  
“Of course I’ve considered it,” the brunette snapped, tears starting to stream down her face. “You think I didn’t consider it the last time I felt like this, or the time before that, or the time before that? It’s a never ending cycle- I feel sick, I think I’m pregnant, I tell Adora and we get excited, we find out there was nothing to get excited over and we fall apart. Then the process starts itself all over again.”  
“Oh, Catra.” Glimmer reached out and grasped the other female’s shoulder. “I didn’t know.”  
“Because we didn’t want you to know. Adora and I knew you’d feel bad that you and Bow have Ella, and didn’t want you to think we resented you for having a family of your own.”  
“So you two decided to just deal with this all by yourselves?”  
“It was better than having you look at me with pity the way you are now.”  
The queen was about to say something to try to make her friend feel better, but was interrupted when a guard approached the two of them.   
“Excuse me, Your Majesty, but Princess Scorpia has requested the alliance’s assistance in the kingdom of Orion. It seems that riots have started to break out in anticipation of next week’s Princess Prom.”  
Catra wiped the remaining tears from her eyes. “I’ll go help Scorpia. You stay and make sure your baby’s fever doesn’t come back.”  
“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” the mother warned. “The situation in Orion sounds dangerous and we still don’t know if you’re-“  
“I’m not. I probably just caught whatever bug Ella has. I’ll be fine.”  
Just as the sorceress was about to grab the hand of her friend and possibly teleport her to stop her from going, the part-feline had already sprinted around the corner and out of sight.  
“Great,” she muttered, knowing she could never keep pace with her on foot, “now I’m gonna have to locate the Horde scum and make sure she doesn’t get herself killed.”  
————————————————————  
Maybe using a Skiff as her form of transportation wasn’t Catra’s best idea.  
Sure, it was the fastest way to travel beside teleporting, but it wasn’t exactly a smooth ride, and she just kept feeling more and more sick.  
“I can make it,” the brunette tried to assure herself. “I just gotta get to Scorpia and everything will be alright.”  
Suddenly, the hair on her arms stood up as the air was filled with the familiar tingling sensation of magic. And the next thing she knew, Glimmer was barreling into her.  
“Watch it, Sparkles,” the part-feline shrieked. “I’m trying to drive here.”  
“Well, you try teleporting onto a moving vehicle and see how well you land!”  
“What are you even doing here? I told you I have this under control.”  
“No, you obviously don’t. Listen Catra,” the queen continued as the sped along, “I’m sorry that this past year has been so hard for you and that I didn’t do more to help, but that doesn’t mean you can just run away from your problems.”  
“I’m not running away,” the woman insisted. “I’m going to help my friend.”  
“You can’t help anyone if you put yourself in danger. Come back to the castle with me. Together we can figure out what’s going on with you and you and Adora can have a real conversation.”  
She blinked. “Wait... you told Adora?!”  
“I sent her a message explaining the situation. I assume she’s on her way back by now.”  
“This isn’t any of your business, Glimmer,” Catra yelled, almost abandoning the steering lever entirely. “It’s not her fault any of this is happening.”  
“And it isn’t yours either.”  
The brunette just stared at her friend for a few moments, trying to sort out all of the emotions she was feeling.  
Then she heard the sorceress yell, “Catra, tree! Tree,” and teleport them away, causing the world to fade to black.  
————————————————————  
The first thing Catra sense is a hand running through her hair.  
“Geez Sparkles,” she groaned, eyes still shut “can’t you keep your hands to yourself?”  
“I certainly hope she can,” a familiar voice teased.  
The brunette eyes shot open and she looked over to see Adora sitting in a chair beside her.  
“Hey Catra,” the blonde said softly.  
“Where,” she started, looking all around the unfamiliar room, “where are we?”  
“Mystacor. Glimmer thought it be best for an experienced healer to check you out. You got the all-clear and they have you something to help you sleep- apparently you’ve been out of it for a while now.”  
The part-feline furrowed her brow. “How did you get here so fast?”  
“I had Darla going at top speed the whole way home.”  
“I bet that really ticked Bow off.”  
“You have no idea how much.”  
The smile melted from Catra’s face when she realized that it was time to face the elephant in the room.   
“I’m really sorry that I made you worry so much about me.”  
The First One grabbed her partner’s hand. “It’s okay. I probably would’ve done the exact same thing.”  
“Adora,” she sighed, “I don’t think I can do this anymore. I’ve been trying to pretend that it doesn’t hurt too bad to see Ella grow, or for Scorpia and Perfuma to have another kid, but it does. It hurts a lot to know that we don’t have that yet.”  
“Catra-“  
“I just can’t keep doing this the way we’ve been doing it, y’know?”  
The blonde nodded. “I understand. And I support you one hundred percent.”  
“So...you’re not disappointed?”  
“Disappointed we aren’t parents yet? Absolutely. Disappointed in you? Never. I wasn’t lying to you Catra. It’s gonna happen for us, one way or another. And when it does, you’re gonna be the best mom in the entire universe.”  
Adora climbed into bed in the space next to Catra, probably breaking all kinds of rules by doing so, but they didn’t care. All that mattered was that they were there together, faith in each other unwavering. And that was enough.  
————————————————————  
“Oh, good,” Glimmer said as she walked into the room a half an hour later and saw Catra and Adora curled up together, “you’re awake.”  
“Yes, Sparkles, I am awake. How very observant of you.”   
The queen responded to that with nothing more than an eye roll. “They said that you should be good to go, I just need to get some more potion recipes for you from Aunt Casta.”  
The blonde smiled meekly. “That’s very sweet of you Glimmer, but it looks like we’re not going to be needing any of that stuff anymore.”  
“Yeah,” her wife added, “we’re gonna stop trying the way we’ve been doing.”  
Their friend smiled knowingly. “Well, it looks like you won’t have to be trying anymore at all.”  
The brunette tilted her head. “What are you talking about?”  
“Okay, I may or may not have used my position as Queen of Brightmoon to force the healer to tell me what they know, which I know is an abuse of power, but I just really wanted to know what was going on and-“  
“Sparkles,” the part-feline cut her off. “Please get to the point.”  
“You’re pregnant,” the sorceress blurred out excitedly.   
“What,” the First One gasped.  
Catra smiled, “are you serious?”  
Glimmer nodded uncontrollably. “I’m so happy for you guys.”  
The couple looked at each other, not having the words to describe the joy that they felt.  
“I’ll give you guys some time alone,” Glimmer said, stepping out of the room.  
“It finally happened,” Adora said, “we’re having a baby.”  
“We’re having a baby!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dang, this took a lot longer to write than I though it would, but I’ve been feeling sick these past couple of days. Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoyed this chapter.


	3. This Is Gonna Be A Good Day, I Can Feel It

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Catra and Adora have their first prenatal appointment, and the Best Friend Squad attends Princess Prom.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I just want to clarify something. In my mind, at Mystacor you can study a very specific source of magic, such as healing. And if you do that, you take a roll as physician and you basically come the Etherian version of a doctor. In this chapter, you’ll meet Astrid, who is basically practicing as Catra’s OB/GYN. Anyway, enjoy!

“I can feel you watching me,” Catra said to her wife as they laid in bed, her back still turned away from the other female.  
“I am not,” Adora insisted. Then, after a few moments of silence, “okay, so maybe I am. But can you blame me? It’s a big day!”  
“Adora, sweetie,” she said as she turned over to face the blonde, “it’s just a check-up. They said they just want to do it to get it out of the way, and we most likely won’t even hear a heartbeat.”  
“It doesn’t matter! It’s still our first prenatal appointment and I’m gonna be there, this time and all the others after.”   
The brunette smiled, then winced as a wave of nausea overcame her.  
The First One tenderly stroked her arm. “You okay? Do you need me to help you to the bathroom?”  
“Nah, I’m just a little queasy right now. Nothing to be concerned with.”  
“I’m always gonna be concerned about you,” the embodiment of She-ra said, before a mischievous smile came across her face. “You know what might help you feel better?”  
The part-feline put her face in her hands. “Please don’t say the calendar.”  
“The calendar,” her partner excitedly shouted over her, getting out of bed and happily trotted over to the object.  
“Ugh! I’m gonna have to kill Bow for giving that thing to you.”  
“I, for one, love that he gave this to us,” Adora said as she flipped to the current day. “It lets us know what’s going on with the baby.”  
“I think the healers and physicians at Mystacor are better recourses for what’s going on with the baby. Which reminds me, why exactly do I have to go all the way to Mystacor? The castle already has a great healer on-sight.”  
“They may be great, but Astrid is supposed to be the best of the best, so that’s who I want taking care of you.  
“Now, let’s see, day thirty-seven. At this stage, the baby is still about the size of a strawberry seed and is starting to develop a spine.”  
“I should hope so. It’s gonna have to learn to stick up for itself.”  
“Very funny, Catra.”  
“I know, I’m hilarious,” she said with a smirk as she started to rise from the bed.  
“At least let me help you up.”   
“Adora, seriously? I’m not even showing yet.”  
The First One blinked, stating, “you act like that makes a difference for me.”  
The brunette rolled her eyes. “If I let you help me up, will you at least let me walk down the stairs without me having to hold your hand?”  
“Nope,” she said as she put her wife’s arm around her shoulder.  
————————————————————  
“Ow,” Bow exclaimed at the breakfast table as Catra flicked his ear hard. “Why’d you do that?”  
“That’s for giving Adora that stupid calendar. She won’t stop obsessing over it.”  
“Really!” He then turned his attention to the blonde. “What size are they?”  
“Still a strawberry seed,” she gushed.  
“So cute!”  
“I know! I can’t stop thinking how tiny they are and how much I love them already!”  
“Don’t even try with these two, Catra. It’s a lost cause,” Glimmer said as she handed her friend her daily magical potion.   
The brunette scowled at the drink. “You know, I was kind of expecting the constant intake of gross liquids to stop once I got pregnant.”  
“But these ones are filled with all kinds of nutrients for you and your baby.”  
The woman sighed and glared at her stomach. “You better be worth it, kiddo.”  
“So,” the master archer started as he fed his daughter while she sat in her high-chair, “you guys excited for the appointment?”  
“Absolutely,” the blonde beamed.   
“Catra?”  
“I mean, the only thing that’s going to happen is a bunch of tests. It’s not like we’re going to even be able to see the baby.”  
“It’s still pretty exciting,” the queen offered.  
“Yeah,” she replied, trying to hide a small smile, “I guess it is.”  
Bow’s eyes lit up. “And then later today, Princess Prom! Oh, and Micah’s agreed to watch Ella, so we’re ready to dance the night away!”  
“I’m so ready for tonight,” his wife chimed in, placing a hand on her daughter’s head. “I love my little princess, but Mommy could really use a night off. And I’m so excited to meet Scorpia and Perfuma’s new baby.”  
Catra shook her head lovingly. “Those two are never going to stop having kids, are they? I can’t believe they spontaneously adopted... again.”  
“It’s honestly so them I don’t expect anything different from them anymore.”  
————————————————————  
“Adora, I know that you’re excited, but can you please stop bouncing your leg so much?”  
“Oh,” the blonde said, looking down to see that her wife was in fact right- her leg was going up and down at top speed. “Sorry.”  
“It’s fine,” the brunette said as she sat upright on the observation table.   
“I’m just a little nervous, now that we’re actually here. I mean, what if they find something is wrong with you or the baby?”  
“Honey, nothing is going to be wrong. I know that there’s always a possibility of something bad happening, but I don’t want this pregnancy to be ruled by fear. This is gonna be a good day, I can feel it.”  
The First One was about to object- her partner could tell by the look on her face- but before she could, their physician walked in through the door of the examination room.   
“Hello ladies. How are we doing?”  
“We’re good, Astrid.”  
The woman then looked to her patient. “And how’s the expectant mom?”  
“Tired.”  
“Well, that’s a perfectly common symptom of pregnancy.”  
“I think it has something more to do with dealing with Adora all day.”  
“I’m just trying to be helpful,” the woman in question exclaimed.  
Astrid chuckled. “I’m sure you are.”  
Catra looked to the healer expectantly. “Can we just start the appointment?”  
“Absolutely. So, generally speaking, today will be your longest appointment with me. This is the day when all the preliminary tests are done and we establish some of the things we should expect from the remainder of the pregnancy- the official due date, any complications, the works. Your chart says your a little over five weeks along, is that correct?”  
The two woman nodded.  
“Okay, so I would recommend waiting on the ultrasound. Right now, there’s not much to see or hear from your baby, so let’s make an appointment for next month to do that. Also, today I’m gonna put you through a lot - we’re talking blood and urine tests, body examinations, a full medical history from both of you. I think it’d be a good idea to reserve that special moment for a day that isn’t going to be bogged down with tons of questions and information.”  
The brunette just stared at her for a moment. A lot of information was coming out of this woman all at once and it was kind of hard to keep up.   
“I understand this can feel like a lot of things happening all at once. This is your first child, but know that I’m here for you and will answer any questions you may have, no matter what they are. My hope is that you’re going to walk out of here feeling a more in control than you did before. But to do that, I’m gonna need you to trust me. Can you do that?”  
Catra nodded, grateful for the reassurance.  
“Lovely. Now, let’s start with the blood work, shall we?”  
————————————————————  
“Well,” Astrid said as she came back into the room with the results of all the tests. “I have good news.”  
That made the two other woman in the space perk up immediately. “Really?”  
“Yes really. As far as one can tell at this stage of the pregnancy, Catra and the baby are doing fabulous, no complications whatsoever.”  
Adora let out a breathe she had no idea she’d been holding in. “It’s really amazing you can find out stuff like that this early.”  
The physician smirked. “I’m assuming I don’t need to explain to you how great Entrapta is at enhancing technology.”  
Catra chuckled. “Nope, you do not.”  
“Then I think that’s about it. We’ve already gone over what you should and shouldn’t be doing while your expecting, what to do in the event of an emergency, and all the tests have been run. Unless you have any questions for me, I’ll see you guys next month.”  
The part-feline looked to her spouse, who indicated to her that she didn’t have any remaining questions. The two expectant parents started to walk out of the room, before a “hey,” from Astrid caused them to stop and look back.  
A warm smile was on the woman’s face. “Congratulations.”  
————————————————————  
“I still think you should’ve let me brush your hair,” Glimmer insisted later that day as she attempted to run a hand through Catra’s hair.  
The brunette swatted her away. “Get away from me, crazy lady!”  
“Guys,” Adora chided, “stop acting like children. We’re about to greet the hostess.”  
Her wife raised an eyebrow. “The hostess? You mean Scorpia?”  
“I don’t think she’s gonna care about proper ball etiquette,” Bow added. “In fact, she’s probably changed it so that you have to give the party-thrower a hug.”  
The princess in question gasped in delight as she approached her friends. “That’s actually a great idea, Bow. All of you, come here!”  
Suddenly, the entire Best Friend Squad found themselves being being picked up and spun around by Scorpia, who was in a flowing dark red dress with a floral crown to match.  
“Scorpia, darling,” Perfuma interjected, placing a hand on her wife’s arm, “I think you should probably let them down now.”  
“Oh, right. Right.”  
“Besides,” Catra said, smiling brightly, “isn’t there someone else we need to be introduced to?”  
The part-scorpion beamed. “That’s right. I can’t believe you guys haven’t been introduced to Flora yet!” She immediately rushed over to the crib that had been set up by her throne, somehow able to gently pick up the child using her pincers.  
“Scorpia,” Adora cooed as she looked at the newborn, her short, white hair just starting to grow out and her tiny tail curled up in a ball. “She’s beautiful.”  
Glimmer looked to the couple. “How have you guys been handling the transition?”  
Perfuma gave a nervous laugh to indicate her current state of stress. “I haven’t been able to do my morning meditation for over two months.”  
————————————————————  
“So,” Catra said as she and Scorpia stood out on the balcony, attempting to catch a moment of fresh air in between all the chaos of the party, “how are Elysia and Willow reacting to the new baby?”  
“Not gonna lie, it was hard on them at first. The two of them already had grown up a lot when they came into our lives, and they did it together. It was pretty obvious that they were scared we were replacing them with Flora, as if we were saying they weren’t enough.”  
“How did you get past that?”  
“Basically the same way Perfuma and I get through everything with them- we gave it time. Told them through our actions that they were still our daughters and this was an addition to our family, not a substitute. When we could, we all went on walks, picked vegetables from the Plumerian gardens, even planned this party.”  
The brunette smiled, “I only hope I can be half as good a mom as you are, Scorpia.”  
“You’re not gonna even have to try, Wildcat. You and Adora have come so far and have such a huge capacity for love. I have no doubt that when you guys have a baby, that kid is surely gonna be one of the luckiest beings in the universe.”  
“Well,” she started, gently placing a hand on her stomach, “it won’t be too long now.”  
Scorpia practically froze in excitement, digesting the meaning of her friend’s words. “Wait...are you?”  
The part-feline nodded. “I’m pregnant.”  
Once again, the woman found herself being scooped up by the hostess of the party, almost being crushed by how tightly she was being hugged.  
“This is such a great surprise. I mean, I knew you guys were trying, but now it’s actually really happening- you’re going to be a mom. Our kids are gonna grow up together! Wouldn’t it be crazy if they become best friends like we are?”  
“I don’t think it’d be crazy at all. In fact, I think that’d be a pretty perfect way for them to grow up.”  
“Catra,” Adora called as she stepped onto the balcony. “I’ve been looking for you everywhere! It’s almost time for the first dance and... why is Scorpia crying?”  
The princess wiped her remaining tears away with her pincers. “They’re happy tears, I promise. I’m just super happy because Catra just told me you guys are expecting!”  
“Oh.” The blonde turned her attention to her wife. “I had just assumed that you had told her when we found out last week.”  
“What!”  
“It was nothing personal,” the brunette tried to assure her friend. “I just wanted you to be able to focus on getting ready for Princess Prom.”  
“You found out you were pregnant last week and didn’t immediately tell me?!”  
“Again, I didn’t want to overwhelm you.”  
“Where is your sense of loyalty, Catra?”  
————————————————————  
“Well that was a fun party,” Bow said as he and the rest of the Best Friend Squad partook in their usual after-party tradition- raiding all of Brightmoon’s kitchen for ice cream.  
Glimmer snorted, “my favorite part was when Adora literally tackled Catra while we were dancing.”  
“She was about to lift someone above her head,” Adora tried to protest.  
Catra rolled her eyes. “I was about to do that because that is literally part of the dance routine.”  
“Dance routine my butt. You’re already carrying one human life, you’ve met your max capacity.”  
“You’ve got to be kidding me!”  
“I tried to warn you,” the queen of Brightmoon said to her friend. “Her overprotectiveness is only gonna get worse.”  
Her husband nodded in agreement. “Just wait until she turns into She-ra and insists on carrying you everywhere.”  
The part-feline hit the male on the shoulder. “Don’t give her any ideas!”  
“That’s actually not a bad idea,” the First One said as she stood up and tried to telepathically summon her sword. “For the honor of-“  
“Finish that sentence and you will not live long enough to see our child.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dang, this week has been a rollercoaster. I got my period and experienced really bad symptoms that basically had me feeling crappy the entire time. And even if I’m feeling insecure about my writing, I was still able to finish this chapter and for that I’m proud. I hope you guys enjoyed it, and thank you so much for reading!


	4. They’re Never Alone

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Entrapta says something that makes Catra wonder about the future of her family.

“Again, I am so sorry about this,” Scorpia whispered to Catra. “I was just so excited by the news, you know? And it just kind of slipped out...any time I had a conversation with one of the other princesses.”  
“Scorpia, I promise it’s fine. Adora and I were going to have tell everyone about the pregnancy soon anyway. You telling everyone just spared us the trouble.”  
In fact, the couple had actually counted on the leader of the former Fright Zone to tell everyone. When something excited her, there was no way she could keep it in for long, no matter how hard she tried. Catra and Adora decided to just let it happen, figuring they’d get it out of the way and answer any and all questions the princesses had at the biannual Alliance brunch.  
The brunette just hadn’t anticipated there being so many comments and questions.  
“Wow,” Mermista commented, “you’ve already got a huge bump.”  
She glared at the princess and protectively cradled her stomach. “For your information, this is a perfectly normal size for someone to be when they are almost eleven weeks pregnant.”  
Her wife cut in with, “ten weeks and four days, to be precise.”  
“Have you heard the heartbeat yet?” Netossa asked as she cut into her stack of pancakes.  
“Not yet,” she replied, “but it’s happening at our next appointment, which is in a few days.”  
Frosta jumped into the conversation, asking, “do you guys want a boy or girl?”   
“Either one would be great,” the blonde stated.  
“Yeah,” the part-feline agreed, then took a sip of her drink. “The gender really doesn’t matter to me.”  
“Catra,” Perfuma started as she rocked baby Flora from side to side, “are you sure you don’t want to eat something?”  
The expectant mother scoffed. “That would be great. If only I could actually keep anything down. Besides, I have been really good at drinking these potions Glimmer’s been giving me everyday.”  
“Those are supposed to be in addition to your regular food,” the queen said with a glare. “Not instead of.”  
“I’ve been trying to tell her that,” Adora insisted, turning her attention to her wife. “I know it’s not exactly fun to eat right now, but you have to do it. You’re eating for two now.”  
Entrapta tilted her head thoughtfully. “Technically, that statement is untrue. ‘Eating for two’ implies that Catra now requires the nutrients needed for two human beings, when really she’ll just need to eat a few hundred more calories in her second and third trimester.”  
“And there you have it,” the brunette said pointedly. “My diet is perfectly fine just the way it is.”  
“I never said that. And anyway,” the princess of Drill continued, “how do we know that she is only carrying on fetus?”  
That caused the woman in question to spit out her drink in shock. “Excuse me?”  
“Well, think about it. You are part-feline, and it’s common knowledge that felines usually have more than one kitten. And we don’t know anything about you or Adora’s genetic history. For all we know, multiples could run in your families.”  
“Multiples?” Adora stuttered. “As in... more than one at a time?”  
“Precisely.”  
“I’m sure the likelihood of that happening is very slim,” Glimmer tried to assure the blonde. “I mean, what are the odds that either of you have that in your genetic makeup.”  
“Statistically,” Entrapta started, obviously trying to do calculations in her head, “the odds of that are-“  
“If I eat something, will everyone stop talking about our genetic makeups,” the pregnant woman yelled, annoyance clearly written on her face.  
Without a word, Scorpia handed her a basket of muffins. She accepted it, and the brunch continued in awkward silence.  
————————————————————  
“Are you mad at me,” Adora asked as she walked the courtyard with her spouse the next day.  
“What,” Catra responded, giving her a strange look. “Of course I’m not mad at you.”  
“Are you sure? Cause you’ve barely been saying anything since yesterday morning. I know my reaction to what Entrapta said was far from perfect, but I want you to know I wouldn’t be upset if we were having more than one kid. It’d actually be amazing to know that our kids would always have someone to look out for them, even when we aren’t around. However, it’d still be a huge adjustment and Entrapta just said it so casually and that made me-“  
“Adora,” the brunette cut her off, “that’s not why I’m upset. Your reaction was perfectly normal, and a lot of that stuff was going through my mind as well.”  
“Then what’s the problem?”  
“It’s nothing. I’m probably just making a bigger deal out of it than it really is.”  
The First One took her wife’s hand and looked deep into her eyes, showing that she wasn’t going to drop this. “We promised to tell each other what’s bothering us, no matter how small.”  
“Yeah,” she sighed, “I guess we did.  
“Lately I’ve been thinking about our families-our biological families. My position still hasn’t changed, I don’t want to try to find them and I’m more interested in starting a family with you than finding out about one I barely spent any time with.”  
“But,” the blonde prodded.  
“... But Entrapta brought up a good point when she was talking about our genetics. We have no idea what does or doesn’t run in our lineage. And what if we pass something bad onto our kids. I couldn’t live with that, Adora, knowing that I could’ve caused my child pain.”  
“Hey, I don’t want you to ever think like that. For starters, Astrid did a blood test on both of us last appointment and she’d have told us if anything had raised a red flag. And second, even if something comes up down the road that might be linked to genetics, we didn’t cause that, and we’d do everything we can to support them. At the end of the day, that’s what our kid is going to remember, that’s what’s going to determine if we’re good parents or not.”  
The part-feline held the other tight, starting to cry a little. “I just never want anything bad to happen to them.”  
“But it will. Bad stuff is going to happen, that’s just a part of life. All we can do is make sure that they know they’re never alone when it does.”  
————————————————————  
“Okay ladies,” Astrid said as she brought out the ultrasound machine, “now that we’ve got all of the routing stuff out of the way and you’ve talked to me about the possibility of multiples, are you guys ready to hear the heartbeat?”  
Catra slowly nodded and leaned back on the table, pulling her shirt up. She could feel Adora grab her hand and whisper into her ear.  
“Whatever happens, none of us are gonna be alone, okay?”  
The brunette squeezed the hand holding her as a sign of understanding. If they had one kid or more, if there was something wrong now or there’d be something wrong in the future, it didn’t matter. They’d get through it as a family.  
“It’s going to be a little cold,” the physician warned as she placed the lubricant onto her stomach, “and you might feel a slight pressure once I put the transducer on you.”  
The whole room was silent for a few moments as Astrid moved the wand around in an attempt to find the clearest image possible.  
“Well, it looks like for once, Entrapta theories were incorrect,” she said as she showed the two the monitor. “That’s your one and only baby.”  
To Catra, what she saw on the screen looked nothing like baby. But there was definitely a blob of something there. And in an instant, that something became her whole world.  
“They’re cute.”  
The healer nodded. “I’ll obviously have to do more measurements, but they look right on track development-wise. About the size of-“  
“A lime,” Adora finished for her, not taking her eyes off of the screen, “and they have eyelids and fingers and toes.”  
“That’s correct. Now, let’s see if we can hear the heartbeat.”  
It wasn’t too long before the women did in fact hear it, the noise sounding like galloping horses with no intention of slowing down.   
To the two future moms, it sounded like pure magic.  
————————————————————  
“We’re going to have a baby,” Adora stated as they laid in bed that night.  
Catra raised an eyebrow. “Are you just figuring that out?”  
“Well, no. But seeing him or her actually on the screen, hearing a heartbeat... I don’t know. It just solidified for me that this is really happening.”  
“And you’re happy about that, right?”  
The blonde smiled and gently caressed her wife’s baby bump. “I couldn’t be more ecstatic. I can’t wait till they start moving.”  
“Ugh, speak for yourself.”  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Also, if any of you are fans of Avatar: The Last Airbender or just looking for a good YA novel, I’d highly recommend reading the Kyoshi novels they made this year and last. Amazing storytelling that changed my outlook on certain characters and scenes from the original show, as well as positive gay representation. I’m surprised how few people have read it.


	5. You Still Want This, Don’t You?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Catra starts to worry that Adora doesn’t see her like she did before the pregnancy, and the two start to plan a trip.

“Come on baby, you can do it! I believe in you!”  
Catra sat up in bed, giving her wife a glare. “What on Etheria are you babbling about this early in the morning?”  
Adora places her hands on the part-feline’s belly. “I’m trying to coach our baby into kicking for me. All the parenting books say positive reinforcement can work wonders.”  
“Not for fetal development it can’t. Sixteen weeks is the earliest that I can feel the baby kick, and they are literally inside me. Also, they’ll actually be able to hear anything till about two weeks from now.”  
“But that’s for normal, boring babies. Our baby is a mixture of you and me, meaning that they’re extra special.”  
The brunette raised an eyebrow. “Meaning they’ll be able to hear and kick faster?”  
“Precisely.”  
“...you’re crazy. You know that, right?”  
“Well, you’re the one who is willingly having a baby with me. So that’s on you.”  
“Touché.”  
The First One stared at the baby bump fondly. “I just can’t wait for them to know who I am.”  
“They know who you are.”  
The blonde rolled her eyes. “Now look who’s trying to speed up fetal development.”  
“Trust me, they know. The second they’re born, they’ll look to you and think, “so this is the lady that wouldn’t let me or mommy do anything.’”  
“I just want you both to be safe!”  
“I know and it really is sweet,” the woman replied, though she did feel a little annoyed at the implication that she couldn’t keep the baby safe on her own  
“Thank you.”  
“I do, however, have an objection to you waking me up this early.”  
“You can go back to sleep. It’s me and baby’s time together anyway.”  
“Well they are growing inside me, so I’m thinking I’ll be a part of that time for a while longer.”  
The blonde beamed. “I guess so.”  
————————————————————  
“So Catra,” Glimmer said as she watched the woman devour her fish, “I’m assuming you don’t have morning sickness anymore?”  
“Took long enough. I’m so glad that that went away and I finally have some of my energy back.”  
“I wouldn’t get used to it,” the sorceress warned as she pointed in the direction of her daughter, who was happily munching on small bits of cereal. “Once the baby comes, you’re gonna be drained like never before.”  
“That reminds me,” Bow chimed in. “When are you guys gonna go on your babymoon?”  
The expectant mother furrowed her brow. “Our what now?”  
“You know, your babymoon. Like, the babymoon you guys are supposed to take during the second trimester. A babymoon.”  
“We have no idea what that is Bow,” Adora commented. “So can you stop repeating it like we do.”  
“...you’re kidding, right? How can you not know what a babymoon is?!”  
“We grew up in the Horde,” the brunette exclaimed. “We didn’t even know what parties were! And just by the name I can tell it’s some sort of cutesy princess thing that would probably has no practical value.”  
“It’s actually an Etherian tradition that almost everyone follows, regardless of status,” the queen explained. “When a couple is about to have a new baby, especially their first, they go away on a vacation together to spend time together and connect, since the newborn will take up all of their time. Bow and I went on one when I was pregnant with Ella.”  
“Though I didn’t find it very relaxing,” her husband added, “what with Casta trying to guilt trip us for not telling her about the pregnancy before anyone else.”  
“No offense, Sparkles, but I have no desire to spend an entire week with your aunt.”  
“You don’t have to go to Mystacor. You could go to the beach or stay at that fancy cabin you guys have in the woods. You could even go out into space on Darla.”  
“Right, cause Miss Overprotective here is gonna let me do interstellar space travel,” the part-feline replied, motioning to her wife.  
“Even so, you still have a whole planet of options to choose from. You should take advantage of this opportunity to go on a vacation just the two of you, before it’s gone for a long time.”  
“A long time,” Bow added, emphasizing the word long.  
“A vacation does sound nice,” Adora chimed in.  
The part-feline hit the blonde’s shoulder. “Your taking their side? Over your pregnant wife?”  
“The points they’re making are valid. And when’s the last time you and I went on a vacation?”  
“Well we cant go. I’d have nothing to wear!”  
“Wow Catra,” Glimmer said drawled, “I’ve never seen you worry so much about wardrobe options.”  
“No. I mean I literally would have nothing to wear. Even my baggiest clothes are getting harder to fit in. And a lot of those aren’t exactly fit for a public outing.”  
The queen suddenly dawned a mischievous grin. “I think that’s a problem easy enough to solve.”  
————————————————————  
“And why exactly is Adora not allowed to come with us?”  
“Because as much as I love your wife, she has a terrible sense of fashion,” Glimmer said as they entered the small shop that specialized in maternity and baby clothes. “Besides, if she was here I wouldn’t be able to grill you on why you don’t want to go on a babymoon.”  
“I already told you my reasons for not going.”  
“And they were all stupid, shallow reasons that would never normally stop you from going on a vacation with the love of your life.”  
“Well, then I guess the pregnancy hormones must’ve finally kicked in.”  
“I don’t buy that. There’s some other reason, something that your not telling us. But that’s okay, we have a whole day of shopping ahead of us. Plenty of time for you to fess up.”  
The queen then started looking around, carefully observing all the items of clothing and occasionally looking back at her friend to see her reaction every time she picks up an outfit.  
About twenty minutes into their shopping excursion, the woman’s eyes lit up and she makes her way over to the baby clothes section, grabbing a tiny pink sweater with a kitten knitted on it. “Isn’t this precious? We should get it!”  
Catra tilted her head. “Don’t you think that’s a little small for Ella.”  
“Not for Ella, silly- for your baby! You’re gonna have to start getting things like this soon anyway. You’re almost halfway through the pregnancy, and I know twenty-four weeks sounds like a lot of time, but it goes by fast. And that’s assuming the baby doesn’t come early.”  
“I don’t know. Chances are that the baby is going to have some feline features like me, so I think it’s a little weird for them to have a cat on their clothing in addition to that.”  
The sorceress shrugged as she placed the item back in the display. “Suit yourself. We’re here to shop for you anyway.”  
“Which we don’t have to do, by the way. I’m perfectly fine wearing oversized clothes.”  
“But you said yourself that they aren’t the best outfits to wear in public. And while they technically fit, having maternity clothes that are in your actual size feel a lot more comfortable, trust me.  
“Now here,” the woman said as she shoved a mountain of clothing into the brunette’s arms, “try these on and let me see how they look. Your queen demands it.”  
————————————————————  
“This would be perfect to wear on a date with Adora,” Glimmer observed as her friend walked out off the changing booth. “I really like it.”  
“Well I really hate it.”  
“You seem to be hating ever outfit I pick out for you. Can you at least tell me what you don’t like about it?”  
Usually, wearing a suit made Catra feel important, powerful. But this one just seemed to draw attention to all the places she didn’t want attention drawn to- her fat ankles, widening hips, and ever-growing belly.  
“It makes me look pregnant,” was all she said in reply.  
“Um, that’s probably because you are pregnant, and I hate to break it to you, but there’s no outfit that’s gonna make you look like you aren’t.”  
“I know that. So what’s the point in even trying to look nice!?”  
“Just because you’re having a baby doesn’t mean your suddenly ugly.   
“Catra... you do realize that. Right?”  
The part-feline just folded her arms around her chest self-consciously.  
The sorceress face softened. “Come on, put your regular clothes back on. We’ll go somewhere and talk.”  
————————————————————  
Catra sighed as she sat down with her friend on a nearby bench, knowing she was expected to say what was on her mind. “Lately, it feels almost as if Adora sees me as an incubator, constantly checking up on my and making sure I’m not overexerting myself. And if I’m being honest, part of me likes that. Because it means she isn’t focusing on all the things that are happening to my body right now that change the way I look.”  
“And that’s why you don’t want to go on vacation, isn’t it?”  
“She’s going to want to do the things we used to do before we were expecting. Go for walks, swim, eat out, cuddle, maybe more. The whole purpose of this babymoon thing is to take the attention off of the baby, but it’s the baby that’s keeping her from realizing how unattractive I am.”  
“Catra, you are still very attractive. And you aren’t alone in feeling this way. Every pregnant person worries about how they look to their partner, I know I did. It was hard for me to see myself the way Bow saw me when I was constantly puking my guts out and my uterus was expanding like a balloon. But just like with Bow, I can guarantee that as much as Adora micromanages, she doesn’t see you as an incubator. She still sees you as her partner in all this, the same one she fell in love with. You just have to talk to her about how your feeling and she’ll let you know that.”  
The expectant mother rubbed her belly. “I knew things were gonna change when we had a kid. I just didn’t know it would change this much.”  
“I don’t think anyone really knows how much having a kid changes things until they have one. It’s something no one can truly ever be fully ready for. But you still want this, don’t you?”  
“Of course. More than anything.”  
“Then that’s enough. You and Adora are just going to have to adjust to a new normal, and you’re gonna have to do it together, just like every couple does. But you two care about each other so much that I’m not worried.”  
————————————————————  
“Hey,” Catra said as she entered her bedroom, shopping bags in hand.  
“Hey!” Adora put down the book she was reading. “How was shopping with Glimmer?”  
“Not as bad as I’d expected.”  
“That’s good.”  
“What about you? What’s your day been like?”  
“I actually didn’t have any major work I needed to do, so me and Melog had a chill day,” she replied, absentmindedly stroking the creature next to her as they purred under her touch. “Also, I looked into some vacations spots for our babymoon, and I think I found the one.”  
The brunette raised an eyebrow when she looked at the brochure she was just handed. “The Heart-Blossom Resort & Spa?”  
“Yeah. It’s in Plumeria, obviously, and there’s tons of stuff for us to do. I was thinking we could spend a few nights there, then stop by and see Perfuma and Scorpia before we head back to Brightmoon.”  
“Sounds good.”  
There was a huge pause in the room before, “you don’t want to go, do you?”  
“What? No. I definitely want to go.”  
“Really? Cause you seemed to be giving any and all excuses to avoid the topic this morning.”  
Her spouse sighed. “Look, it’s not that I don’t want to go. I just worry it won’t be like you want.”  
“What are you talking about?”  
Catra took a deep breathe in, trying to collect her thoughts. She had always hated talking out her feelings, hoping the other person would understand what she really meant. However, deep down, she knew it was the only way for things to get better.”  
“Ever since I got pregnant, I feel like you look at me differently. And I feel like I look at myself differently too. I feel like I’m right back to how I felt in the Horde- insecure and struggling to see myself as worth something. This whole experience is almost swallowing me whole, like I have no control over what’s happening to me. And I worry that you don’t see me like you used to, as your smart, attractive wife.”  
“That’s probably because I don’t see you like that anymore.”  
When the blonde saw the panic in her partner’s face, as well as the way Melog bristled, she immediately began to speak again, correcting herself. “I still see all those things, of course. But it’s something more, too. I see how much strength you have by enduring all these things your body puts you through. I see how caring you are in how you treat the baby and light up whenever we talk about them. I see how beautiful you are in the way you carry yourself, almost as if there’s this maternal glow around you. Catra, when I think about what you are doing so that we can start a family, I feel like it’s your name that should be known throughout the universe, not She-ra’s.  
“I didn’t tell you any of these things because I didn’t want you to feel like I was patronizing you, but I realize now that I need to find a balance. And if I ever made you feel like that, I’m sorry. I promise you, I do still see you as the person you truly are, and I still think your the most beautiful thing in the whole universe.”  
Wordlessly, Melog moved to the foot of the bed, allowing Catra to get in and lean into her wife, letting those words sink in.  
“I’m going to need you to do something for me though,” The First One whispered.  
“What is it?”  
“Tell me when your feeling like this, and when you feel like I’m being too controlling. I don’t ever want you to think that what happens to you isn’t your decision to make, especially during the pregnancy. And I’m always happy to show you just how I feel about you. Okay?”  
“Okay.”  
The couple didn’t say a word for a long time, just enjoying the company of each other. They both knew that this wasn’t the end of this discussion, this would be an ongoing conversation that included both of them actively listening to each other. But they wanted to do it. They wanted to make the other feel valued and heard and loved. And that was enough, at least for now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It took longer to write this than I thought, and it was a lot more emotionaly charged than originally intended, but at I finished the chapter! Thanks for reading!


	6. Babymoon (Part 1)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Catra and Adora set off on their vacation together.

“Well Catra,” Astrid said as she observed the fetus on the monitor, “you’re exactly where I want you to be at twenty-one weeks pregnant. The baby baby is a little big, but is still within the normal range and on track for your due date. Have you felt the baby move?”  
“I’ve been getting some strong flutters here and there. Adora still can’t feel them though.”  
The blonde pouted. “I can’t believe our kid is playing favorites already.”  
“Don’t worry,” the physician assured with a chuckle. “It’s perfectly normal for the partner to not feel anything yet. But I don’t suspect it will be that way for long.  
“Now... do you two want to know the gender?”  
That had been a discussion amongst the couple all week long, weighing each option carefully. On one hand, it was something to be excited about, making it far enough into the pregnancy to know this kind of stuff. On the other, the biological sex didn’t really matter to them, and for all they knew, that might not be how their child would identify in the future. And besides, the baby being girl or boy wasn’t going to affect how the child was raised.  
“We’re fine not knowing,” Catra finally replied, taking her wife’s hand. “We want to be surprised.”  
“Okay, then I guess that’s it. Now remember that the next time you visit, your appointments will become two weeks apart instead of four. It’s going to keep increasing as we get closer to the due date.”  
“I know.”  
“Have a safe trip back to Brightmoon.”  
“Oh we aren’t going to Brightmoon,” the First One happily replied. “It’s our babymoon, so we’re going straight from here to the resort we’re staying at.”  
“Ah well, have a good time and relax as much as you can.”  
“Don’t worry,” the brunette said as she hopped down from the examination table, “I’m planning on it.”  
————————————————————  
They arrive at the resort later than anticipated, Swift Wind deciding he wanted to fly off course for while (without their permission). By the time they got to Plumeria, the sun was setting in sky.  
“I’m gonna miss you,” the steed sniffled.   
“Same here,” Adora said as she stroked her friends mane.  
“Please,” Catra groaned as she pulled her overnight bag over her shoulders, “it’s only five days.”  
“That’s a long time,” the horse insisted.  
“I think you two will survive.”  
“I suppose,” the blonde said with a sigh, a hint of humor in her voice. “Thanks for the ride, Swifty. I’ll see you when we get back to Brightmoon.”  
“Don’t have too much fun without me,” the flying unicorn yelled as they took to the skies.  
“Finally he’s gone,” the part-feline said.  
“What do you have against Swift Wind?”  
“It’s not him I hate, more like his mode of transportation. I don’t like traveling in a way where I don’t have complete control and one wrong move could be disastrous.”  
“I know, but he’s the fastest way to get from Mystacor to here, besides teleporting of course.”  
“Not with all the detours he takes,” the brunette grumbled under her breath. “Let’s go ahead and get checked in.”  
————————————————————  
“Wow,” Catra said as she looked all around their massive suite, “you really went all out for our babymoon, huh?”  
“Actually, I just asked them to give us whatever was available. I guess saving the universe automatically gets you special perks.”  
“Fine by me,” her wife said as she plopped down onto the gigantic floral bed. “Saving everyone’s butts was hard work.”  
“Before you get too comfortable, don’t you want to pick out what we should do while we are here?”  
The brunette raised an eyebrow. “Isn’t the whole point of a vacation to get away from the stresses and schedules of everyday life?”  
“Well, yeah, but-“  
“I’m not doing one minute of planning. Whatever we want to do, we do it right then and there. Now I’m exhausted, so I will calling it a day and going to sleep.”  
“It’s barely past dinner time, Catra.”  
“And? The baby’s tired.”  
The blonde considered her options. She could head out of the room and explore the resort, but that wouldn’t be any fun without Catra. She could also look at their brochure again and see what spa treatments she was interested in, but her partner had just stated she didn’t want their trip to be vigorously planned, and she knew that this option would end up in her obsessing over how she could fit everything into their stay.   
The last option made the most sense and was the most appealing. And so, she climbed into bed with her wife and unborn child, wrapping her arms around them as she let out a sigh of contentment.  
“This is nice,” Adora stated.  
“So far it’s not any different than what we’ve been doing back at home.”  
“True, but it’s refreshing to have a change of scenery at least.”  
“I am glad that I don’t have to worry about you fawning over that stupid baby tracker calendar.”  
“I packed it in my bag.”  
“I took it out when you weren’t looking.”  
“I know. That’s why I put it back into the bag right before we left Brightmoon.”  
The part-feline rolled her eyes, smiling. That was totally something Adora would do.  
“Just indulge me on this one little thing and I promise the rest of the vacation will be completely baby-free,” the current She-ra begged. “No talk of jobs, the Alliance, or our impending parenthood.”  
“Promise?”  
“I promise.”  
“Okay. Sounds good.”  
————————————————————  
The next morning, Adora sat on the bed as she waited for Catra to finish changing.  
“I can’t believe you’re doing this to me.”  
The blonde furrowed her brow as she called to her wife in the bathroom, “hey, I’m not doing anything to you. You’re the one who dragged me out of the middle of breakfast and announced you wanted to go swimming. I’d have been fine with finishing my waffles.”  
“I’m not talking to you. I’m talking to your child, who has decided to completely wreak havoc on my body.”  
“I happen to think you look stunning.”  
“You can’t even see me.”  
“Well then come on out and let me have a look at you.”  
The brunette complied, walking straight up to her wife in her two-piece red and black bathing suit, placing a hand on her hip. “So?”  
“Absolutely breathtaking.”  
She frowned. “I already have stretch marks everywhere.”  
“Doesn’t make you any less attractive.”  
“...you really think I look okay?”  
“More than okay. I’m going to have to stay close to you, let everyone know your off the market.”  
“Yeah, cause the huge, pregnant belly isn’t gonna be a dead giveaway for that.”  
It was not long before the two women left their room and headed for the outdoor pool, a tranquil spot surrounded by flowering tropical vines and a natural waterfall flowing into it. It looked as they had the entire place to themselves, the still, clear water inviting them to take a dip in it.  
“I would’ve thought the pool would be the last place you’d ever want to go to,” Adora said as she and her spouse took a few steps into the water.  
“I know, but I read somewhere that swimming is supposed to be a great way to relieve all the aches and pains I’ve been experiencing lately.” Once she reached the deep end of the pool, Catra leaned back and let her body just float for a few moments, letting out a small purr.  
“Better?”  
“Much. After all this constant weight gain, it’s good to feel weightless for a little while.”  
The current She-ra smiled. “We can stay in here as long as you want. All day even.”  
The expectant mother looked over at the other woman. “Even if that ruins the schedule you created for the day?”  
“What? Pft, I don’t have a schedule. That’s ridiculous.”  
“I saw you circling things on the brochure this morning before breakfast.”  
“Okay, so maybe I looked at the brochure to see what we wanted to do during the trip. But none of the activities have a set time we have to do them...well, the one I have scheduled for tomorrow does, but that’s it. Today can be our day to relax in the water and hang by the pool.”  
“Are you going to tell me what this mysterious activity for tomorrow is?”  
“Nope. It’s a surprise.”  
“Adora,” she warned, “tell me write now what you’ve got planned.”  
“Not gonna happen.”  
In a moment of furry, the part-feline splashed the other woman with water as hard as she could.  
“Oh it’s on” Adora said with a smirk as she grabbed her wife and forcibly dunked her underwater, thus starting an all out war between the couple that lasted for hours on end.  
————————————————————  
“I for one loved that afternoon meditation,” Adora said the next day as she exited the resort’s yoga room. “I was able to find inner peace.”  
“I was able to nap for an hour,” Catra grumbled.  
“I know. I had to nudge you every so often to get you to not snore so loud.”   
“So was that the grand activity you had planned for us today?”  
“Nope. That was just a fun, spur of the moment thing, like the walk we took this morning.” Suddenly, the heroine stopped her wife in front of the hotel’s kitchen doors. “This is the grand activity I had planned for us today.”  
“What, are we going to be cooking?”  
The blonde let out a small laugh as they walked into the room. “Not quite.”  
“Ah,” a green-haired woman said as she approached the two visitors, clearly in charge by the look of her outfit, “you must be Catra and Adora.”  
“That’s correct. Harmony, right?”  
“Yes. Come, sit down.”   
“Okay,” Catra said as she pulled herself up onto the tall chair at the counter that overlooked the entire kitchen. “I’m here, I’ve met Harmony, and I’m sitting down. Now can you tell me what we are doing here?”   
The First One smiled. “Harmony here is going to be cooking us a full course meal right before our eyes.”  
“Anything you want,” the chef agreed, “all from scratch.”  
The brunette looked to her wife. “You’re kidding?”  
“I know you hate asking the kitchen staff back home to make an entire meal for you that differs from everyone else’s just because of your pregnancy cravings. But I saw on the brochure that they did special reservations like this, and I figured this way you could have that.”  
The pregnant woman smiled. “You’re the best partner I could ever ask for, you know that right?”  
“I had my suspicions.”  
“You do realize that you’re going to have to eat whatever weird food I order too, though.”  
“For you? I can live with that.”  
“Good, because I’m craving pickles.”  
————————————————————  
Catra lie awake that night, staring up at the ceiling. “Hey Adora?”  
The embodiment of She-ra, whose eyes were closed, let out a small grunt to let her partner know she was listening.  
“You know how we agreed to not talk about the baby a whole lot while we’re here?”  
Another grunt.  
“Well I think we’re gonna have to break that agreement.”  
Those words caused the half-asleep woman to bolt up in bed, turning on the lamp next to her. “Why? Is the baby okay?”  
“Yeah, they’re fine. It’s just...”  
“Just what?”  
“They’re kicking. So hard that I think you’ll be able to feel them.”  
The blonde eyes went wide with anticipation. “Really?”  
“Here,” the brunette said as she placed her wife’s hand on her belly.   
After a minute had passed, “Catra, I can’t feel anything.”  
“Just one more moment.”  
Then, suddenly, Adora felt it. A small movement, like a tiny tap on her palm, but she felt it all the same.  
“That’s them?” She looked up at the part-feline, tears of joy in her eyes. “That’s our baby?”  
“That’s our baby.”  
The First One moved her body so that her head was right next to the top of baby bump, hands gently stroking it as she said, “I’m not quite so sure I can make it through the rest of our vacation without talking about the baby.”  
“That’s okay. As long as we can still enjoy the remaining time you and I have alone together.”  
“I think I can manage that.”  
Adora falls asleep cradling her wife’s baby bump, her and Catra ecstatic that she was finally able to feel their child for the first time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! I had a stressful week, so I broke up their vacation into two parts. Next time we will see a spa day and a visit to Perfuma and Scorpia!


	7. Babymoon (Part 2)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Glimmer and Bow are trying to get Ella to walk. Meanwhile, Catra and Adora are enjoying a lazy day of vacationing.

Glimmer extends a hand, excitement written all over her face. “Come on Ella! Come to Momma!”  
The one year old stared at her cautiously, looking back at her father in the opposite direction.   
“Go on, my little angel,” Bow encouraged, “we know you can do it.”  
The little girl, bolstered by her parents enthusiastic words, slowly started to take a step forward in the direction of her mother. Then, after that seemed successful, she picked up her other foot in an attempt to repeat her previous movements.  
Unfortunately, she lost her balance and fell flat on her face, immediately starting to wail in pain and frustration.  
“Oh, my baby,” the queen said as she scooped up the infant and pressed a series of kisses to her forehead, which immediately calmed the child. “It’s okay. It’s all okay. We’ll try again whenever your ready.”  
Her husband approached the two of them and placed a hand on his wife’s shoulder. “It’s kind of crazy to think about, isn’t it? It feels like just yesterday we were in the delivery room, seeing her for the very first time. And now she’s on the verge of her very first independent steps.”  
“It’s even crazier to think that Catra and Adora are about to have a baby of their own. I’m really happy for them.”  
“Me too. They’ve wanted this for so long and deserve it so much.”  
The mother started to lead her family in the direction of the kitchen for lunchtime. “You think they’re having fun on their babymoon?”  
“Oh, most definitely. Knowing them they are probably doing something wild and crazy right now.”  
————————————————————  
“Now this,” Catra said as she placed the food tray in the middle of her and Adora’s bed, “this is a vacation.”  
“Definitely,” her wife agreed as she popped a grape into her mouth. “No one to tell us we have been lying in bed for too long or that we’re late for a meeting.”  
“No Entrapta asking if she can run tests on my unborn baby.”  
The blonde raised an eyebrow. “She’s been asking for that?”  
“Only four times so far, which I’ll take as a win. Don’t worry, she backs off as soon as I say no.”  
The other woman started lazily rubbing circles around her spouse’s baby bump and saying in a sing-song voice. “Well that’s good. Because we wouldn’t want Mommy She-ra to have to make an appearance, would we baby? Would we?”  
After a moment of silence, the First One gasped. “Catra! They kicked! They understand me!”  
“You sure that isn’t just them telling you to be quiet?”  
“Doesn’t matter why they’re doing it, all that matters is that they are! They can be annoyed with me as much as they want to be, but I’m never going to stop loving them.”  
“I know. That’s what’s going to make you such a great mom.”  
Adora looked up at her wife, smiling brightly. “Not as great as you.”  
The part-feline did her best to wipe the tears from her eyes before they turned into a waterfall. “Stupid hormones. Okay, enough baby talk. What’s on the agenda for the rest of today?”  
The current She-ra looked at today’s schedule and frowned. “Not much. Unless you’d want to go scuba diving while twenty-one weeks pregnant.”  
Catra grimaced. “Hard pass.”  
“Thought as much.”  
“So... lounge in bed all day until dinner time?”  
“You know it!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! I had the whole chapter planned in my head, but then my chronic condition sprang up and I got violently ill in addition to it. So, I went with the flow and wrote a cute little transition chapter instead. Hopefully things will be better next week and I can successfully carry on with the story!


	8. Babymoon (Part 3)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Adora and Catra have a spa day, then take a visit to Scorpia and Perfuma.

“So,” Adora started as she wrapped her arms around her wife, “last day here.”  
“Yep,” Catra agreed, “tomorrow it’s off to visit the flower family and arriving back at Brightmoon before dark.”  
“You ready for a day full of pampering and relaxation?”  
“I don’t know. A spa day kinda sounds like a waste of time.”  
“That’s a whole point of a vacation- to waste time! And they’ve got pedicures, facials, prenatal massages.”  
“I don’t want to be stuck in a chair all day.”  
“You won’t be, I promise. Okay, how about this- we pick one of the activities on my list and give it a try. If we hate it, we leave write after and that’s that.”  
The brunette paused in contemplation. “Just one activity?”  
“Just one, I promise. You say the word and we leave.”  
————————————————————  
Catra let out a soft purr as she felt the masseuse gently massage her upper back, carefully relaxing all of the areas of tension in her body.  
Adora smiled. “I take it you are actually enjoying the massage?”  
The part-feline, who was situated on her side, simply gave a small shrug of her shoulders. “It’s not so bad.”  
“Are you sure?” the blonde teased as she received a back massage of her own. “Cause we could just leave.”  
“Don’t want to,” she simply muttered in reply.  
Her masseuse, Cecilia, laughed lightly. “I take it that you are enjoying your experience so far?”  
“Cecilia,” the brunette started softly, “feel free to come over to Brightmoon and give me one of your heavenly prenatal massages anytime. And I get that that doesn’t sound like a high compliment, but if you knew me, you’d know it is.”  
“It’s true,” her wife chimed in. “Catra generally hates it when people touch her for long periods of time.”  
Ivy, the woman who was working on Adora spoke next. “So how far along are you?”  
“We just passed the halfway point a little over a week ago.”  
“That’s exciting. This your first?”  
Catra nodded, absentmindedly stroking her belly.   
“I remember when I was expecting my first,” Cecilia smiled. “Feeling those kicks and dreaming of all the firsts my husband and I would get to experience with him.”  
“Got any advice for us?” Adora sat up for a minute and took a sip of water.  
“Honestly, the thing that was the hardest was cutting myself some slack. I wanted everything to be perfect for my son, so when I would make a mistake or didn’t know what he needed right away, I felt like I was a bad parent who was lacking some maternal instinct that every other mothers had. But in reality, those things come in time. It’s okay to not know everything right away, because when you love your child and put in the effort, those answers will find you.  
“Also, do what you’re doing now- make time for each other and keep your connection strong. You two made that baby together. It’s going to expect you to work together to raise it.”  
Catra smiled as she and her wife both instinctively reached for the others hand, silently promising each other that they would never stop fighting to maintain the beautiful bond that they had.  
————————————————————  
Adora let out a sigh of contentment, lying on her stomach as she felt the body wrap beginning to work. “I think this might be my favorite activity of all.”  
Catra raised an eyebrow. “Really? After everything we’ve done today- the massage, the pedicure, the aromatherapy- you’re telling me your favorite spa treatment is the one where you’re covered in mud?”  
The blonde shrugged, “I like what I like. Though I am disappointed that you couldn’t get one too.”  
“Don’t be,” her partner assured. “If it’s not recommended for the baby, then it’s just something I won’t do. Besides, this complementary smoothie they gave me is really good, and that goop would probably stick to my fur.”  
The First One sighed again, this time sounding much more distressed. “I guess so. I just want this vacation to be perfect for you. You deserve that.”  
“Adora, this vacation is for us, not just me. And as long as I have you, everything is already perfect. You’ve been planning a lot of wonderful things for us to do these past few days, and I’m grateful. But how about you let me take the reigns concerning what we do on our last night here?”  
“You sure? You don’t have to.”  
“I know. But I want to.”  
————————————————————  
“Wow,” Adora breathed as she looked her wife up and down. “You look amazing.”  
Catra had decided to go for a simple, cream-colored jumpsuit, an outfit that seemed to perfectly compliment the blonde’s yellow sundress.  
“You don’t look too bad yourself, princess. Now, are you ready to go?”  
“That depends. Are you going to tell me where we are going?”  
“You’ll find out when we get there.”  
The couple exited their room and walked out of the resort, only stopping once at the front desk for Catra to pick up a mysterious basket.  
“What’s in there?” the First One asked as they walked along a lantern-lit path in the woods, the current She-ra attempting to open the container, only to have her hand slapped away.   
“Why do you always have to be so nosy?”  
“I prefer the term inquisitive. Now what’s in there?”  
“You’ll find out soon enough. We’ve reached our spot.”  
Adora found herself looking out onto a lush cliff side, the stars shining in the night sky, twinkling and dancing in all sorts of shapes and colors.  
“It’s beautiful,” she whispered, taking the other woman’s hand.  
Catra motioned to the basket. “In here I’ve got a blanket, as well as some sandwiches and sides. I also brought some cake and those gummy candies I know you love so much. I figured, what better way to end our babymoon than just the two of us alone together, watching the world pass us by.”  
The blonde smiled. ”Just like it was in the beginning,” she commented, her mind calling back to their special place in the Horde.  
“Catra,” she continued as they laid down on the blanket together, “this was such an amazing idea.”  
“So you like it?”  
“I love it! I’m kind of surprised I didn’t think of it myself, but you putting this together for us is even better.”  
The two didn’t say much as they ate their meal. They didn’t need to. Just being together was enough for the women to be in a state of pure bliss.  
A half-hour later, Catra fed Adora a bite of cake and asked, “is it weird that I’m kind of ready to go back home?”  
“I don’t think so. This week was fun and I’m so glad we did it, but I’m also excited to see our friends and be back home.”  
“It’s so strange to think that the next time we go on a vacation, we will most likely be bringing the baby with us.”  
“Strange in a good way?”  
The brunette placed both of their hands on her stomach, feeling as the baby gave tiny kicks to make their presence known. “Strange in a perfect way.”  
————————————————————  
“Catra!” Willow shouted as she rushed outside of her house to meet the woman, tightly hugging her the second they came into close contact.  
Adora frowned, saying, “what am I, chopped liver?”  
Catra shrugged with a playful smirk. “What can I say? Kids love me.”  
“I’ll say,” Perfuma said as she approached the couple, a seventh-month-old Flora attached to her hip and an eleven-year-old Elysia at her side. “I mean, look at you Catra! Your aura is practically glowing with maternal energy!”  
“Uh...thank you?”  
“Wildcat,” Scorpia called as she ran up to her friend, suddenly coming to a stop before she made contact. “Can I hug you? Is it okay if I hug you? I don’t want to hurt the baby if I hug you.”  
The brunette chuckled and wrapped her arms around her friend. “Yes Scorpia. It’s okay if you hug me.”  
“Gently,” her wife added.  
“See what I have to deal with, Scorpia? Even when we’ve just gotten back from vacation, Adora is in overprotective mode.”  
“I’m really trying not to be,” the blonde insisted.  
“It’s okay,” the part-scorpion replied. “But you guys should come inside! I want to hear all about your vacation!”  
————————————————————  
“And last night, Catra put together a really nice picnic for us,” Adora finished. “So all in all, I’d say it was a perfect vacation for us.”  
“That’s so sweet,” Perfuma commented. “You guys must be so happy.”  
“We are,” Catra added, absentmindedly rubbing her belly. “I’m just starting to think of all the stuff we’re going to have to start doing when we get back. Set up a nursery, prepare for the delivery, not to mention picking out a name.”  
“You’ve still got time,” the ruler of Plumeria reminded her. “Just take one day at a time.”  
“Have to admit Catra,” Scorpia said as she grabbed a cookie off the plate on the coffee table, “I think that baby might already be too spoiled. Any little girl or boy would be so lucky to have two amazing moms like you.”  
That prompted Willow to look up to the visiting couple and ask, “are you having a boy or a girl?”  
“We don’t know,” the blonde answered, “we want to wait and find out once the baby gets here.”  
The girl decided at that moment to lean in towards Catra’s round belly and whisper, “I hope your a girl.” Then, after a moment of reflection, she added, “but I’ll play with you either way.”  
————————————————————  
“So I’m assuming after this you’ll be heading for Brightmoon,” Scorpia started as she and Catra walked along a path outdoors after hours of conversation and playtime with the girls, the princess pushing Flora in her baby stroller.  
“Yeah. I wish we could stay longer, but we promised Bow and Glimmer we’d be back before sunset and honestly? My back is killing me.”  
“Ha, I wouldn’t doubt it for a moment. How are you feeling about the pregnancy by the way? I know you like to be in control, and this seems like a situation where that isn’t always possible.”  
“You could say that. I get tired pretty easily, that’s for sure, and Glimmer says that’s only going to get worse. But... it’s somehow different with this than anything else I’ve ever experienced. Whenever I get frustrated with it or feel like I’m loosing my mind with worry, I just feel them kicking and it makes it seem worth it. Doesn’t make it any easier, but at least I feel like everything that’s happening right now has a purpose, y’know?”  
“Yeah. That’s practically my definition of parenthood right now.”  
“Well you seem to be doing a great job. I can’t believe how big all the kids have gotten and they seem to be very happy.”  
“That can change from minute to minute,” Scorpia joked. “Especially with this little one right here. But when any of the girls smile or laugh or tell me ‘I love you,’ I couldn’t imagine my life turning out any other way.”  
“I can’t wait for that.”  
“I know. And Adora seems excited too.”  
“She is extremely excited. A little overprotective, but I know she’s trying to cut back on it, and I can appreciate that.”  
“That’s half the battle right there, Wildcat. Being willing to try.”  
When it was time for the couple to say goodbye, there were a lot of sweet, heartfelt hugs and genuine promises to see each other again soon.  
————————————————————  
“I can’t believe you two!” Adora started.  
Glimmer sighed, exasperated. “What were we supposed to do? Push her down every time she tried to do it?”  
“If that would’ve allowed me to see my niece’s first steps then yes, that’s exactly what you should’ve done.”  
Bow picked up his daughter and put her on his hip. “Adora, we didn’t plan on her walking while you guys were away. It just happened to be the time that was right for Ella. We’re sorry you missed it, but we did get some video footage of it if that’ll make you feel better.”  
The blonde considered this for a moment before finally stating, “I get to do story time with her tonight?”  
“Absolutely,” the master archer said as he placed the girl into her aunt’s arms, where she was then excitedly whisked away up into her bedroom to help prepare her for sleep.  
“She really missed her,” Catra commented. “And you guys. We both did.”  
“We missed you guys too,” the queen added. “But I hope you had fun on your vacation.”  
“Oh definitely. We went swimming, ate at these amazing restaurants, went for relaxing walks, Adora got to feel the baby kick for the first time, had a spa day-“  
“Wait,” Bow cut her off, pure sadness in his expression, “Adora got to feel the baby kick?”  
“And we didn’t get to be there?” Glimmer added, pouting.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wooo! Finally finished the vacation! This was fun to write and was kind of like a little break from all the planning and serious stuff that happens in the work, which is what I wanted it to be for the characters. Thanks for reading!


	9. Being Enough

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Adora starts to worry that she’s not doing enough for the baby, which leads her to questioning her parenting ablitities.

“Hey you.”  
Adora jumped slightly at the sound of her wife. She had been trying her best every morning to get up as quietly as she could in hopes of not waking up her pregnant wife. Everyday for the past two weeks she had been successful.  
Until today that is.  
“Hey Catra,” she started, an awkward, nervous smile on her face.   
Catra sat up in bed, looking expectantly at the blonde. “Want to tell me what you’re doing?”  
“Just... looking at the calendar! Twenty-six weeks and six days. Baby weighs about two pounds and is roughly the size of a head of lettuce.”  
“Fascinating,” the part-feline said slowly. “Now are you going to explain to me why you need to be in your ‘messy clothes’ to read the calendar?”  
Well, Adora certainly couldn’t answer that question. It would ruin the surprise she had been planning every since they got back from their babymoon. But she had to admit, to the outsider, it did look weird that she had put on the clothes that she knew she wouldn’t mind getting ruined in the midst of a project.  
“I can’t tell you,” the First One replied. “It’s supposed to be a surprise.”  
“A surprise?”  
She nodded. “For you and the baby.”  
“Well... am I going to be kept in the dark about this surprise for too long?”  
“I don’t think so,” the current She-ra answered as she sat down on the bed next to her wife. “I should be down with it by the end of the week.”  
“And it’s a good surprise, right?” the brunette asked, a hint of worry in her voice.  
“Yeah. At least I hope it is.”  
Catra smiled. “If you think it’s something good, then it’s most certainly is.”  
The blonde liked to think that. She couldn’t bear to think of the outcome if Catra didn’t like her latest project. She was beginning to have her doubts over if she would, but she was already in too deep to turn back now.  
“Are you sure you’re okay?” her wife asked.  
“Absolutely. I’m gonna head out,” Adora announced quickly as she leaned in to give her wife a quick kiss on the lips, “bye beautiful.” Then, she turned her attention to the ever-growing baby bump, rubbing it affectionately. “Bye kiddo.”  
————————————————————  
“Glimmer got caught up in a meeting, so it looks like me and the little angel are flying solo for the day.” Bow looked around as he sat down at the dining table for lunch, Ella in the high chair next to him. “Where’s Adora?”  
Catra shrugged as she picked at her plate. “Working on some sort of ‘surprise’ for the baby.”  
“That sounds fun,” Bow said before he took a bite of his sandwich.  
“It’s just she’s been working on it for weeks and getting up super early to do it, thinking I don’t notice. When I tried to finally talk to her about it today, she wouldn’t budge.”  
“I mean, this is Adora we are talking about,” he offered, placing diced fruit in front of his daughter while he did so. “She’s a very stubborn person.”  
“Believe me, I know,” the brunette groaned. “It’s her best and worst quality.”  
“It’s gonna be okay,” the master archer assured as he grabbed his friend’s hand. “Just give her some time.”  
“Adora gets into project mode when something’s bothering her,” the woman said worriedly. “And she won’t even tell me, her own wife, what it is.”  
“This isn’t like it’s been in the past, Catra. Adora has a stable support system now, and you’re a huge part of that. She’s going to tell you what’s wrong when she’s ready.”  
Catra sighed once again. “I hope you’re right.”  
————————————————————  
A few days later, Adora entered Glimmer’s study asking if any packages had arrived for her.  
“How should I know?” the queen snapped.   
The blonde through her hands up in the air. “Sorry, just thought I’d ask.”  
Glimmer sighed and ran a hand over her face. “I know. I’m not frustrated with you, I just have a lot on my mind lately.”  
The First One sat down across from the sorceress. “Anything you want to talk about?”  
“Even if I wanted to, I can’t. I have to get this report to Plumeria by next Wednesday.”  
“You honestly think that you’ll be able to focus on your work if something is bothering you?”  
The woman let out a small, defeated laugh. “Probably not...  
“Ella said ‘Dada’ today,” she said dramatically.  
Adora just sat there for a moment. “Um, Glimmer? As one of your best friends, I’m trying to think of how I can support you, but I’m not really seeing an issue here.”  
“That’s because it’s not really an issue. At least I logically know that. It was her first word and Bow lit up that she called him that. But a huge part of me was hoping she’d say ‘mama’ first, as some form of validation, I guess.”  
“That’ll probably be the next word she says,” Adora offered.  
“Maybe. I’m worried it’s not enough though. I don’t want Ella to see me as a second-rate parent, but it’s hard to not feel like that when I’m stuck in my office all day and Bow is the one taking care of her. I play with her when I can and put her to bed every night, but I want more for us than that, y’know? I want Ella to know that just because I have a demanding job it doesn’t mean she’s not the first priority in my life.”  
“Yeah,” her friend replied, playing with her hands awkwardly, her thoughts turning to her own unborn child. “I can understand that.”  
————————————————————  
“Do you think I’ll be a good mom?” Adora asked Catra as they laid in bed together after dinner.   
“I should hope so,” her wife replied jokingly. But her tone got serious when she saw that the blonde was starting to spiral. “Of course you’re going to be a good mom. How could you ever think otherwise?”  
“I just do. I’ve been thinking like that for a while now. And today Glimmer was talking about how her job sometimes affect her ability to spend time with Ella. And it made me think about me and She-ra.”  
“Every parent has to deal with balancing their kids with the other aspects of their life. It’s might take a while, but we’ll figure it out.”  
“But what if it’s not enough? What if I can’t be there for them in the way they need me to be? The way you need me to be? I’m literally doing nothing right now to help you with the pregnancy.”  
“Is that what this is about? Because I’m carrying the baby and you’re not?”  
“It’s part of it,” the First One admitted. “I look at you and it’s obvious that you are doing all you can to keep this kid happy and healthy, and I have no doubt that you are going to be the best mother the universe has ever seen kid. But where does that leave me? I feel like the baby isn’t even here yet and I’m letting them- and you- down.”  
“But you aren’t. Honey, we made this baby together, and you’ve been here for me the whole way. Right now, our roles are just going to have to be different, but that doesn’t mean you aren’t any less important in this kid’s life. Just like how it was for Bow when Glimmer was pregnant or for Scorpia and Perfuma when they adopted their kids.”  
“I know that our friends aren’t any less of a parent, but it feels different for me. I feel like I need to be doing more.”  
The part-feline wiped the tears from her partner’s eyes. “But what you’re doing right now is enough- more than enough. It always has been.”  
After a few minutes of silence, the brunette continued to speak. “Can I ask you something?”  
Adora nodded.  
“What have you been working on for the past few weeks?”  
“Oh,” the embodiment of She-ra said, completely forgetting about that. “I was uh... putting together the nursery.”  
Catra tilted her head, ears perked up. “You were?”  
“Well yeah. I remember you mentioning to Perfuma that we needed to get that going, so I thought I’d get a jump on it. I’m only doing the basics, we’ll pick out stuff like the bedding together, and if you don’t like it we can always start from scratch again. And the more I think about it, the more I realize it was a stupid idea to even think of starting without you-“  
“Show me.”  
“Are you sure?”  
“Show it to me,” she insisted.  
Together the couple exited their room and walked down the hall to one of the currently empty guest rooms. Carefully, Adora unlocked and opened the door, nervously holding it out for her wife to enter first.  
The part-feline’s breathe hitched as she looked around the nursery. All of the furniture were still in their boxes, waiting to be assembled. But on all four walls, masterfully painted in a way that definitely took weeks of effort, was the night sky of Etheria.  
“You did all of this?”  
The blonde nodded. “I picked some of my favorite star maps I’ve drawn over the years and projected them onto the walls. After that, it was just a matter of tracing really.”  
The dark blues and purples blended together in a way that seemed almost magical, little droplets of silver and gold seeming to admit the same faint light as any ordinary star would. Adora may just call it tracing, but Catra called it pure beauty.  
“How could you ever think that you’d be a bad mom when you do amazing things like this before they’re even in the world yet,” the pregnant woman said in amazement.  
“You think the baby’ll like it?” the current She-ra asked tentatively.  
“They’re going to love it,” the brunette assured, wrapping her arms around the other woman. “Almost as much as they already love you.”  
————————————————————  
Catra woke up in the middle of the night with rather large ache in her lower back. She mentally groaned in frustration, as this had been happening more and more often now that she was approaching the third trimester.   
Walking around the castle seemed to help ease the pain, so she was about to get up and do just that, when the sudden voice of her wife made her freeze up.  
“Hey kiddo,” Adora said to her partner’s belly bump, though she was not able to see it given that Catra was facing the wall. “You and I don’t get a lot of one-on-one time, what with you being inside your other Mommy and all. But I figured I’d take this opportunity to let you know just how happy I am that you’re almost here. You are something I’ve been waiting a long time for, and when I feel you kick or hear your heartbeat, I know you were worth every second of it. I can’t wait to hold you in my arms and watch you grow up. I can’t promise you I’ll be perfect, in fact I know I’m going to make a lot of mistakes along the way. But I promise I’m never going to stop trying to be the best mom I can be, and I’m never going to stop loving you.   
“I’m not even sure if you can understand all of what I’m saying right now, but that’s okay. Because that’s something I’m going to make sure you get from your very first breathe and onward.”  
The baby starting to kick furiously at that, almost as if letting their mom know they got the message. Catra considered telling the blonde this, but decided against it. She wanted this to be something just between the baby and Adora. She slowly closed her eyes and drifted back to sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter isn’t my favorite, but I’ve had a lot of things going on this week. I’m moving within the next month, so there’s all of that, and I’ve been dealing with a lot of health issues, as is my brother, though his is very different than mine. Thank for reading!


	10. Don’t You Ever

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Adora continues to doubt herself while Catra takes steps towards preparing for labor.

“Can I please help put the crib together?” Catra begged as she sat in the newly assembled rocking chair, absentmindedly stoking her belly.  
“I guess you could,” Adora answered, not tearing her eyes away from the instructions for a minute. “But you’re almost in the third trimester of your pregnancy. Your job should be to just sit and relax.”  
“That’s not as fun as you make it sound. And you’ve basically put this entire nursery together by yourself. I should do something.”  
“If you really want to help, you can focus on putting together your birth plan,” the blonde said, pointing to the information guide at her wife’s side. “We’ve already been putting it off for way too long.”  
The part-feline groaned, picking up the booklet. “How much of a plan do we need to have? I go into labor and push a baby out of me, doesn’t seem that complicated.”  
“It’s more about how you want the birthing process to go. Like, where do you want the baby to be born? Do you want any pain medications? Do you want anyone in the delivery room with you?”  
“Well, you’re obviously going to be in the delivery room.” After a moment of silence, Catra started to hesitantly ask, “you are going to be in the delivery room, right?”  
“I want to be there,” the First One said quickly. “Nothing would make me happier then supporting you and seeing our baby during the first moments of their life.”  
“But?”  
“But... sometimes I unintentionally make you more stressed by trying to fix the situation or saying the wrong thing. And I don’t want to make the process any more painful for you then it has to be. So I would understand if you didn’t want me in there.”  
“Adora, when are you going to get it? I’m having this baby with you and I married you- three years ago to the day, might I add- because I love you with all my heart and know that you are the only person in the world I would want to do this with. So suck it up, because when it’s time, you’re going to be right there with me.”  
“Okay,” Adora said, obviously happy that her wife wanted her to be in the delivery room. “Yeah, okay. You’re going to have the best support partner in the universe.”  
“I don’t doubt it for a second. Now, how about you support me as I get up to go pee for the twentieth time this hour?”  
The current She-ra immediately jumped into action, helping pull her wife out of her chair. “And happy anniversary by the way. I didn’t forget, I’m just waiting till tonight to celebrate and give you my gift.”  
“I’m just teasing, I know you didn’t forget. You wrote it into the baby calendar, surrounding it with hearts and a terribly drawn picture of us.”  
“Hey! I worked hard on that,” Adora insisted, a hint of resentment in her voice. Then her expression softened as she ran her hands over her wife’s baby bump. “A lot has changed this past year, hasn’t it?”  
“Yeah, it has. Including the amount of control I have over my bladder, so could we kindly wrap up this heartfelt moment?”  
After a quick chuckle, the blonde withdrew her embrace and watched as the other woman waddled off to find the closest bathroom.  
————————————————————  
One Year Earlier  
Adora anxiously waited for her wife to come out of the bathroom in the bedroom and share the results.   
Catra didn’t have to say anything for the blonde to get her answer, though, the disappointment written all over her face. Even still, her heart was broken when the part-fine curled up with next to her and said the words she had grown so tired of hearing.  
“I’m not pregnant.”  
The woman sighed deeply, placing a kiss on her lover’s forehead. “That’s okay. Maybe it’ll happen for us next month.”  
She just received a grunt in reply, causing her to follow up on it and ask what was wrong.  
“How can you be so calm about this?” the woman demanded. “Aren’t you disappointed? Don’t you want this?”  
“Of course I want this Catra, and of course I’m disappointed. But this is something that we can’t fully control and I have to accept that.”  
Her wife looked down, almost ashamed. “Maybe...maybe if I wasn’t your partner, if you had someone better, more mother-material, you would’ve already had a kid by now.”  
“Hey,” Adora started rather sternly, wanting to stop that line of thinking dead in its tracks. “Don’t you ever think like that. You are the love of my life and nothing could ever change that. You are smart and beautiful and strong and loving- stars Catra, you are full of so much love. Sure, you’ve done some things in your past that you’re not proud of, but you’ve grown from them. And at the end of the day, that is one of the things that’s going to make you an amazing mother. One that any child would be lucky to have.”  
Catra wiped tears from her eyes. “You really think so?”  
“I know so. In fact,” Adora reached over a grabbed a box from inside the drawer of her nightstand, handing it over to the former Horde leader, “I was going to give this to you whenever we got pregnant, but I think you should have it now. Happy anniversary.”  
The brunette opened the box to find a necklace with a golden charm depicting a pair of baby feet on it, her name engraved on the right and her partner’s on the left.  
“You and me are already a family, Catra,” the First One explained. “And whenever we have our baby, that family will grow. But never forget that this whole thing started with us choosing to spend our lives with each other.”  
————————————————————  
Present Day  
Catra played with her necklace as she sat down on a couch in the castle’s lounge, ready to examine all of the information and decide on how she wanted to bring her child into the world.  
Within minutes she was overwhelmed by the amount of options presented to her. There were so many positions, philosophies, and techniques used in childbirth, and they all claimed to be the best one. While she was able to rule out a couple of options (she had no desire to give birth in a pool of water), the expectant mother felt like she was getting nowhere.   
That’s why she was eternally grateful when a friend came to check in on her, possibly the only one who had been in a position similar to this.  
“How’s the planning coming along?” Glimmer asked as she sat down by her former enemy.  
“Horrible,” the brunette replied, running her hands over her face in mental frustration. “I keep telling Adora that however it happens will be fine by me, but she says that it would be good for me to be in control of as much of the delivery as I can.”  
“Well, I’m with Adora on this one. Babies tend to come whenever they want to in whatever way they want to, and it’s pretty scary. You’ve been waiting for such a long time and in an instant, bam! Everything’s progressing relatively fast. It was a huge comfort for me to know that I was as prepared as I could be for birth.”  
“What was it like for you? Is it as really as bad as people say it is?”  
“I mean, I had an epidural once I started active labor. That helped, but there was still a ton of pressure. I’m not going to sugar coat it, contractions hurt a lot. Probably one of the worst pains I ever felt, and that’s saying something. But it was also one of the most rewarding things I ever did. Because seeing Ella for the first time and knowing that I was the one responsible for bringing her into the world, I knew in that moment that for her I would do it a million times over.”  
Catra smiled softly looking down at her stomach. “I can’t wait to meet them.”  
“Hey, shouldn’t Adora be helping you with this?”  
“She offered, but I wanted to have some time for myself to think. She’s so worried that she’s going to mess up somehow, and it’s starting to worry me. I don’t want her to go back to feeling like she’s never good enough, y’know?”  
“Maybe she just needs a gentle push to boost her confidence.”  
“Yeah, that’s what I’m hoping my anniversary gift will do for her, but I don’t know...” the part-feline trailed off, biting her lip in worry.  
“Stay right there,” the queen said as she stood up, hoping to help give her friend at least some temporary relief from her cares. “I’m going to get us both something to drink. Then we can go through some of this information together.”  
————————————————————  
“It looks like the nursery is really coming along,” Bow commented as he double-checked to make sure that the shelf he just put up was level.  
“Yeah,” Adora said with a smile, fitting the cribs mattress with freshly washed sheets. “I offered to help Catra pick out her birth plan, but she said that she wanted to look over the options by herself first. Which, fair enough, considering she’s the one who’s going to be doing all of the hard work.”  
The master archer let out a small laugh. “Ain’t that the truth. But you got to prepare too, you know.”  
“I know,” the blonde said with a sigh. “I’m worried, Bow. She’s really going to need me, and I don’t want to let her down. It kills me to think she’s going to be in all of that pain.”  
“The worst thing you can do is not try at all, and I know that’s not you Adora. I also know, however, that you want to try to make everything perfect, especially for Catra. I hate to burst your bubble, but childbirth is by definition messy and imperfect. There’s probably going to be a time during the process where Catra will get frustrated with everything, and it’s going to be your job to just follow her lead and be whatever version of support she needs from you at that moment.”  
“And if I can’t do that?”  
“You’re going to be able to, I promise. And in the end, all you two will focus on are the wonderful moments throughout the whole event. The unconditional love you feel, not just for your baby, but for your partner. Glimmer was covered in sweat and exhausted beyond belief, but I thought that she was the most beautiful thing in the universe while she was in labor. She was so determined and strong, and, at the end, filled with pure joy. I fell in love with her all over again.”  
The First One reflected on this, imagining Catra’s happiness at the baby’s arrival. She hoped at the end of it all, Catra and the baby would be safe and warm, able to feel the overwhelming amount of love she had for them.   
She didn’t know what she would do if they couldn’t.  
————————————————————  
“You sure you want to spend our anniversary in our bedroom?” Adora asked that night as she lit the candles on the nightstand beside her, hoping to create a romantic atmosphere. “We could always go up to the roof.”  
Catra snorted. “I have no desire to climb that many stairs. Besides, I’m happy wherever we celebrate our anniversary , as long as we’re doing it together.”  
“Aw, you like me. That is so embarrassing for you.”  
“I’m literally carrying your child.”  
“Still.”  
The brunette rolled her eyes affectionately and held out in front of her wife a wrapped up present in the shape of a cylinder. “You going to keep making fun of me or do you want your present?”  
“Present!” She squealed in reply, gleefully taking the object into her possession and peeling back the wrapping paper, then unrolling the thick piece of paper inside.  
Inside was a watercolored image of Catra and Adora in their late teens, their foreheads touching and smiles of pure love drawn on their faces. Even just by looking at the scenery around them, the current She-ra could tell this was depicting her and the part-feline just moments after Horde Prime’s defeat.  
“Last year you told me that our family started with us choosing to spend our lives together and you gave me a necklace to remind me of that everyday. So I commissioned this to be painted to remind you of that. I know everything started to solidify romantically for us at the Heart, but to me, this was the moment that I knew it was all real. That no, it wasn’t just a dream or heat of the moment thing. You loved me and I loved you. There we were, actively choosing to be together.”  
Adora placed the drawing close to her heart. “Thank you.”  
“You shouldn’t be thanking me. Part of me gave this to you for selfish reasons.”  
“Selfish?”  
The brunette nodded, taking a shaky breathe before she started to speak. “Adora, I’m scared too. Scared that I’m going to mess up the delivery somehow and scared I’m going to be a terrible parent. Sometimes I even have nightmares about it. But the confidence you have in me, the love you have for me, it helps me remember the good things about myself. If a person as wonderful as you can stick by me through all the bad things that have happened, then I must be doing something right. And I need you to feel that way too. I need you to trust that I didn’t make a mistake in choosing you as my wife or as the mother of my child. I need you to know that it’s okay to doubt yourself sometimes, but don’t you ever doubt the confidence I have in you.“  
The blonde’s tears were now flowing freely, as were her wife’s. “You really think I do this? Provide the support you and the baby need?”  
“I know you can. That’s part of the reason I’m confident in my decision of it being just you and me in the delivery room.”  
Adora blinked. “You mean, just us and the medical staff, right?”  
“No beautiful. Just you and me. I’ve talked it over with Glimmer and I realized I don’t think I would ever feel comfortable giving birth the way she did, with nurses and physicians telling me how to lie down or when to push. I want to be in control as much as possible of the way things happen and when they happen. I didn’t have control over my own self for a long time, not in the Horde and certainly on Prime’s ship. I want this to be an experience solely concerning our family, with medical staff on standby of course.”  
The more the woman thought about it, the more she could see the part-feline’s reasoning. She knew that while Catra would never admit it, this also was about her reaction to pain. The more people who saw her hurt in any capacity, the more vulnerable she felt, causing her to lash out and insist that everything is fine. That often lead to the pain further exacerbating itself. Maybe with just the two of them, her wife could let her guard down and allow herself to just feel whatever she was feeling at the moment.  
“Okay,” Adora said, resolve washing over her. “I have faith that you know what’s best for your body, and I have faith that you see something special in me that I can’t see in myself. With you by my side, I know that we can do this. I can do this.”  
Catra smiled and held her partner’s hand. “You saying that and truly believing it is the only present I’ll ever need.”  
“Oh, really? Then I guess you don’t want my present to you then? Cause I can just toss it-“  
“Shut up dummy and hand it over.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Been a tough week, so I’m feeling kind of low, but I’m trying to not dwell on it, and honestly? Writing helps a lot. So when I say I appreciate you guys leaving sweet comments and even just reading the updates, I mean it.


	11. All That Matters

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Catra and Adora discuss baby names.

“Okay,” Adora started, staring at her wife as they laid in bed together, finally nudging the other awake. “What do you think of Isla for a girl and Theo for a boy?”  
Catra groaned, eyes still closed. “Adora, I’ve told you before that if the sun is barely visible in the sky, then it’s too early in the morning for baby names.”  
“But this is important! At the rate we’re going, they’ll be our age before we can decide on a name.”  
“Stop being overdramatic. We still have ten weeks.”  
“Not if the baby comes early! And we also have to pick out what they’re going to call us.”  
“Why, did ‘Mom’ go out of style or something?”  
“I thought it would be good if the baby had specific identifiers for us. Y’know, like how Willow and Elysia call Scorpia ‘Mom’ and Perfuma ‘Mama’.”  
“That’s up to you,” she grumbles, “you’re in charge of the cute department.”  
“The problem is that I want it to be unique to us, not like we just copied off of them.”  
“And why exactly do we need to figure this out right now? It’s not like the baby’s going to start talking anytime soon.”  
“They’ll learn what words mean way earlier than that though. Even now they can hear our conversation, so we’re already way behind.”  
“How long have you been thinking about this?”  
“Not long.” The blonde received a glare from her partner and she cracked under the pressure immediately. “Okay, since the end of the first trimester. But I waited until now to bring it up because I knew you’d think it was too soon.”  
“So then you decided to bring it up at six thirty in the morning?”  
“Well I got tired of waiting,” she replied in a small, demure voice.  
The part-feline sighed. This is the life she chose when she married an avid planner.  
“I’ll make you a deal,” she started. “We sleep in for one more hour and we can talk about this from then all the way up to the alliance meeting.”  
“Half an hour.”  
“Forty-five minutes.”  
“Deal,” the First One said happily, diving back under the covers and snuggling up to her wife, making sure to wrap her arms around the space where her unborn child was growing.  
The brunette rolled her eyes. “Must you always touch my stomach.”  
“Well I don’t want the baby to feel left out,” she reasoned. “But if you don’t like it, I can stop doing it.”  
“Don’t you dare.” the woman placed her hands over her partner’s to ensure they stayed exactly where they were. “It’s weird to admit it, but it makes me feel safe. Like you’re protecting us both.”  
The heroine leaned in and placed a gentle kiss on her wife’s cheek. “I always will.”  
————————————————————  
“You know I would be okay with naming the baby after her,” Catra said as the slowly walked to the meeting room. Upon her wife’s confused look, she added, “Mara, I mean. I know how important she was to you.”  
“She still is important to me,” Adora said with a sad smile. “I owe her so much. Mara helped me realize that it was okay to love myself- and you- and that it didn’t make me any less of a hero.”  
“You think about her a lot,” the brunette said in a tone that was more statement than question.  
“I do,” the First One acknowledged. “And when we first started trying, I genuinely considered naming the baby after her. But the more I thought about it, the more I think that’s the sort of thing Mara wouldn’t want me to do. She wanted me to be my own person, to feel free to fall in love and do what makes me happy. Naming our kid after someone else just makes me worry that it’ll be like they’re living in their shadow. Both of us have experienced that life, and I don’t want that for this little one.”  
“I can understand that. But you know, it wasn’t any name that made us feel like that, it was the people around us. Our kid is never going to feel like they’re less than perfect just the way the are. We’re going to make sure of that.”  
“There you guys are!”   
The couple looked over to see Glimmer walking towards them, clearly frustrated as she started to speak again, “all of the princesses are waiting for you guys so we can start the meeting.”  
“We may be late, but at least we don’t have what looks to be like yogurt in our hair,” Catra retorted, motioning to the queen’s head for emphasis.  
The sorceress sighed and lifted her hand through to run it her hair before she dropped it in defeat and started walking towards the meeting room. “I give up, I’ll never get it all out. Bow and I have recently made the discovery that Ella hates anything with blueberries in it.”  
The brunette walked through the double doors, ready to get this meeting over with, when something stopped her dead in her tracks.  
When Catra first came to Bright Moon, the princesses had all decided to give her a chair at the table, one carved with her old mask on it and seated right next to Adora’s. It looked comfy, but the part-feline never used it, always preferring the pleasure to annoy her lover by sitting in her lap throughout the entirety of their meetings. Eventually, the chair just proved to be wasted space and was removed.   
So why was it back here, staring at her?  
“Oh,” Scorpia said once she noticed her friend’s perplexed face, “we just thought that- well, since your thirty weeks pregnant, it might be best for you to have your own chair back for the time being.”  
“Are you saying I’m too heavy to sit with Adora?”  
“No one’s saying that Catra,” her wife assured her as she sat in her own chair, “but you have to admit, you’ve been kind of uncoordinated lately, what with the huge belly and all.”  
“I have no idea what your talking about,” the woman insisted, folding her arms in defiance “I’m as limber and agile as ever.”  
To prove her point, the brunette got a running start, fully intent on using the arm of Adora’s chair to hoist herself over and onto the blonde. But before she could even make it that far, she lost her balance and fell onto the floor.  
“Catra!” The current She-ra rushed over and helped her wife up, frantically asking if she was okay.  
The expectant mother dusted herself off as best she could, a frown on her face. “I’ll sit in the stupid chair.”  
————————————————————  
The meeting was only a fourth of the way done and Catra had already almost fallen asleep five times.  
She was so much more tired these days, and so much more over all the trivial formalities that meetings like this entailed. She tried her best to focus on the current discussion of intergalactic trade routes, but her heart just wasn’t in it.  
She stopped even trying to pay attention when Adora slyly passed a note to her.  
‘What about Luna?’  
The brunette rolled her eyes. Of course baby names was what her wife was thinking about right now. She grabbed her pen and replied back.  
‘Too princessy. And do we have to do this now?’  
‘No better time than the present. Kingsley?’  
‘Bleh.’  
‘Clay?’  
‘Met someone named Clay once. Hated them with a passion.’  
‘You hate everyone with a passion.’  
‘True, but I really hated Clay.’  
‘Y’know, this would be a lot easier if you’d give some suggestions too.’  
The part-feline sighed in resignation, wrote down one word, and slid it towards the blonde.  
‘Rowan.’  
The First One gasped in delight and replied back that that was the cutest name she had ever heard.  
‘Never mind then,’ Catra wrote back, ‘No baby of mine will ever be called cute.’  
‘But they already are so adorable! Remember at the last ultrasound when their little cat ears twitched? They remind me so much of you.’  
‘I hate you.’  
“And we expect that the next shipment will reach Nike within the next week. Shortly after that- Catra and Adora will you please stop passing notes to each other like school children!” Glimmer yelled, causing the whole Alliance to turn in the couple’s direction.  
The room was filled with an awkward silence until Catra pointed to her wife and said in a small voice, “she started it.”  
————————————————————-  
“What’s with the long face?” Catra asked Adora that night as she returned from the bathroom for the third time that hour, rolling into their bed rather ungracefully.  
The blonde pouted. “Nothing on this list feels right. Our baby’s never going to have a name.”  
“They will. Maybe it’s just the sort of thing where we have to meet them before we can decide what we’ll call them.”  
“Maybe.”  
After a few moments of silence, the brunette asked, “what do you think of them calling you ‘Mommy’ and me ‘Mamma’?”  
The First One placed her cheek on her wife’s belly, smiling each time she felt a kick. “The more I think about it, the more I don’t care about what they call us. They could call us by our names for all I care. I never thought I would have the opportunity to love someone in the way I love you two, and All that matters is that I get to meet them and see them grow up.”  
“I hope we get to meet them sooner rather than later. Pregnancy is exhausting and I am ready for it to be over.”  
“It’s going to be so worth it though.”  
Catra snorted. “If that’s how you feel, then maybe it should be you who carries the next one.”  
It’s only when her companion looks up at her that she realizes the implications of what she had just said. They had never really talked about how many kids they wanted to have, always being so wrapped up in preparing for this one. It was extremely presumptuous of her to assume that this wasn’t going to be their only child.  
But all her worries were swept aside when Adora chuckled. “Sure, Catra. If you want, I’ll carry the next one.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter may be on the shorter side, but I still really like it.   
> I’m a little sad because this week I broke my months-long streak of doing some creative writing everyday because I got really sick (which seems to be a reoccurring theme lately) and completely forgot about it for a day. But sometimes that’s how life goes, and the good thing about days is there’s also a brand new one just around the corner, so I’m trying not to beat myself up too hard on that.


	12. Soulmate

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Catra gets a request from Scorpia.

“You were so right Adora,” Bow said to his friend. “Next to Glimmer, I’d say Catra has the cutest pregnancy waddle of all time.”  
“I am not cute!” the brunette insisted, her tail spiking at the accusation.   
“Catra,” her wife started, “you are in the third trimester of carrying my baby. Everything you do right now is cute. And have you seen your waddle lately?”  
“These days I can’t even see my own feet.”  
“Don’t worry, those are still cute too.”  
The master archer let out a high-pitched squeal of delight. “I’m so excited to meet the baby! I just can’t wait to stroke their fluffy ears and hear them purr. It’s the closest I’m ever going to get to meeting baby Catra.”  
The brunette glared. “You do realize that “baby Catra” had a habit of scratching people on the eyeball, right?”  
“Only because you were afraid! And you did it with you’re tiny little kitten claws.” Bow gasped in a sort realization and turned his attention back to Adora. “Do you think the baby will have tiny claws too?”  
“The ultrasounds seem to suggest so!”  
When her tracker pad went off at that moment, Catra was very grateful for the excuse to leave the two kitten-obsessed maniacs.  
“It’s Scorpia,” she explained to the others and started walking toward the door of the sitting room. “I’m going to go take this. And stop watching me waddle!”  
The part-feline made her way back to the room she shared with Adora and accepted the call.  
“Wildcat! Is this a bad time?”  
“There’s never a bad time to here from you, Scorpia.”  
The two friends continued to chat for the next few minutes, but Catra could tell that Scorpia was nervous about something. She was rambling and her pincers were fidgeting, which usually meant one of two things- she had some bad news or was nervous about asking her something.  
The expectant mother prayed it was the latter.  
“Scorpia, you know you can ask or tell me anything, right?”  
The muscular woman sighed. “I know. But I don’t want to put pressure on you, especially right now.”  
“Very soon a screaming, tiny baby is going to be occupying all my attention, so this is actually the best time to get a hold of me. Now what’s up?”  
“I was wondering if you and Adora would be willing to watch the girls Friday night. You can absolutely say no. I know you have a lot going on right now, getting ready for the baby and all, and there’s a million other people I can ask. I just thought I’d ask you two first because you two are all the kids talk about and there’s nobody I’d trust more with them. But as I said, you don’t have to-“  
“Scorps, you’re rambling. You know how much I love your children and I’d be thrilled to watch them.”  
“You sure?”  
“Positive. But if you don’t mind me asking, what’s the occasion? I thought your anniversary wasn’t for a couple more months.”  
“It isn’t. Perfuma and I... we just really need this,” the part-scorpion replied, biting her lip in nervousness.  
“Why? Are you guys fighting?”  
“No, just busy. We each have our own kingdoms to run and three little girls to raise. And I wouldn’t trade away any of it, but it makes it hard to connect with her the way we used to when we had more free time on our hands. I think it would be good for us to have a night to ourselves, to let Perfuma know that I still see her as my soulmate, not just a coparent. Does that make any sense or am I rambling again?”  
“It makes sense,” Catra assured with a small smile. “Do you want the kids to stay overnight too?”  
“Absolutely not. That would be asking way too much and I will not put that amount of stress on you.”  
“Honestly, I don’t even know why I asked. The kids are definitely spending the night with us.”  
“No way, I can just pick them up after Perfuma and I are done with our date. Under no circumstances will you have to watch them overnight.”  
————————————————————  
Scorpia passed over three sets of pajamas to Adora, one for each of her girls. “You’re wife is going to have no problems getting your child to do whatever she wants them to.”  
The blonde laughed. “Catra is very persistent. And I’m glad she was, because it could be a while before we get to have another sleepover with the girls.”  
Willows eyes went wide in horror. “No more sleepovers?”  
Adora crouched down in front of the middle child. “Auntie Catra and I are going to be very busy with the baby for a while, but it won’t last forever. And then you’ll get to have sleepovers with our kid too.”  
“You promise?”  
“Pinky promise.” Adora and Willow locked fingers, sealing the deal.  
“Okay,” Catra said as she entered the bedroom. “The pillow fort is all set up in the nursery and I’m having the kitchen staff bring up the snacks now.”  
“Awesome,” her wife replied, then turned to Scorpia. “So what’s the big plans for tonight?”  
“Perfuma’s drum circle ends in about an hour, so I was going to pick her up and take her out to eat at her favorite restaurant, maybe go for a walk afterwards.”  
“Sounds perfect.”  
“I just hope it’s not too simple.”  
“Scorpia,” the current She-ra began, “you’re making an effort to be close to your wife. That is more than enough.”  
“Yeah Mom,” Elysia added. “Mama seemed really happy when I told her about tonight.”  
Scorpia’s eyes widened. “She knows?”  
The child blushed in embarrassment. “It kind of just slipped out.”  
“Then why didn’t she say anything about it to me?”  
“She said she didn’t want to ruin your fun surprise. Now that I think about it, I wasn’t supposed to tell you any of this.”  
The part-scorpion smiled. “Classic Perfuma.”  
“You go now,” Adora said as she took the carrier containing Flora from Scorpia’s left pincer. “Don’t worry about the kids for a second, just go have fun.”  
After giving each girl a kiss goodbye, Scorpia left and the real fun began.  
————————————————————  
“I’m surprised they insisted on being in the nursery with Flora,” Adora said quietly, draping a blanket over the two oldest girls while they slept, their bodies as physically close to the crib as they could get.   
“I’m not,” Catra replied. “You can tell they really love and want to be around her.”  
“Tonight was really fun,” her wife commented, “getting to color and play games with the girls. I can’t wait to do this kind of stuff with our kid.”  
“It’s not always going to be like this,” the part-feline reminded.  
“I know. There’s going to be a lot of long nights and hard days. But I’m more than willing to do it all.”  
After a few moments of quiet, Catra began, “I want us to be like Perfuma and Scorpia- still making time for each other in our day-to-day life.”  
“I think the fact that we’re deciding to do that ahead of time is a good start.”  
“You’re more than just my wife and the mother of my child, Adora. You’re my soulmate. We’ve been through a lot, and I know I wasn’t always an easy person to love-“  
“That’s not true.”  
“But I want you to know how grateful I am that you never gave up on me. Everyday you give me such a beautiful life to wake up to.”  
“I didn’t give you anything,” Adora insisted. “We created this life together and I can’t wait to see what comes next.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I literally just came up with the idea for this today, which was good because I wasn’t exactly sure how I wanted to next chapter to go and wasn’t in the mood to think about it a whole lot. My birthday is coming up, and it’s bringing up a lot of negative feelings I have about myself and where I am in life, and it’s really scary. But I really do appreciate you guys stopping by to read, the comments on my works make my day.


	13. A Pretty Special Thing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Adora is doing her best to ensure that everything is ready for the delivery, and Glimmer is doing her best to ensure that a party gets thrown.

“So I’ve heard back from everyone on the guest list,” Glimmer started. “Frosta has some dignitaries coming that day, so she won’t be able to make it. The star siblings are on the other side of the galaxy and would never make it in time. Kyle and Rogelio are going to be busy helping Huntara setting up the Crimson Waste’s new market system, but Lonnie is coming.”  
“Why do we have to do anything at all?” Catra asked as she lied down on the couch, Adora rubbing her feet for her.  
“Um, because you two are having a baby- your first might I add- and baby showers are a great way to see everyone while also getting gifts to help you prepare for that.”  
Bow nodded in agreement. “The things Glimmer and I relied on the most to get us through Ella’s first months were given to us by parents who knew exactly what we would need. Things we didn’t even think of.”  
“I’m thirty-four weeks pregnant,” the part-feline commented. “I’m way too exhausted for a party.”  
“Adora,” the queen started, turning to the blonde, “please tell your wife that one can never be too exhausted for a party.”  
“A party might be nice,” the First One admitted with a smile before she straightened up and did her best to look stern. “But you have to admit Glimmer, you did kind of spring this on us. If Catra isn’t up for it, then she isn’t up for it.”  
The sorceress sighed, tossing her itinerary onto the coffee table in front of her. “Fine. I guess we’ll just have to wait for the next time we’ll all have an excuse to be together. We just had Princess Prom, so what, only ten more years till the next one?”  
“Glimmer,” Adora started to warn.  
“We’ll do it,” Catra interjected before her wife could continue further.   
“We will?”  
“Yes!” Glimmer shouted as she jumped up. “Bow, come with me. We should start talking to the kitchen staff about the menu options.”  
Once the other couple had left the room, the current She-ra turned all of her attention to the love of her life. “You know I was totally willing to respect your wishes and shut the whole idea down, right?”  
“I know. You were starting to use your commanding officer voice, which I must admit is always hot. But I want you to have this.”  
The blonde tilted her head. “Me?”  
The expectant mother nodded. “I saw the way you looked when Glimmer brought up the idea, and I know how much you love parties. So I can put up with being a little tired for a day so you can have this one.”  
“You sure? Say the word and it all goes away.”  
“And I’ll hold you too that. But for now, it’s okay with me.”  
Adora gave her wife a tender smile as she leaned over and kissed her forehead. “You’re the best woman ever, I hope you know that.”  
“Oh believe me, I do. Now if you’ll excuse me,” the brunette said as she started to attempt to get off of the couch. “I have a midday nap that’s calling my name.”  
“You go do that. I have some last minute delivery details I need to set in place anyway.”  
“What are you talking about? What details?”  
“Nothing to concern your pretty little head with. Now go take that nap.”  
Catra grunted as she arched her back. “Don’t have to tell me twice.”  
————————————————————  
“Amethyst please,” the blonde begged. “I want to make sure that everything is going to be ready for the big day.”  
“For the millionth time Adora, the birthing suites are for people who are in labor,” the purple-haired physician reminded the woman as she walked about the castle’s medical wing. “Seeing how Catra is not, I can’t give you access to one.”  
“Why not? There are over a dozen of them. Are you really expecting that many people to all have a baby all at the same time?”  
“You never know.”  
“Amethyst, I’m begging you,” the First One said earnestly. “You’re going to be in the medical wing, but I’m the only one who’s going to be in the room with Catra while she’s having the baby.”  
“I’m fully aware of that fact. We went over the birthing plan last week.”  
“But we both know that things don’t always go as planned in these sort of situations. We have no idea what’s going to happen- if the baby will be in distress, if Catra will lose too much blood, the list goes on and on. And the worst part is that even if things go as smoothly as they can possibly go, my wife will being enduring hours of excruciating pain and I can’t do I thing about it. I can read as many books as I want and can recite as many loving phrases as I can think of to her, but I can’t take the pain away. The only thing I can do is make sure that the second she walks into that delivery suite, she feels safe and comfortable and has no doubt that she can do this.”  
The physician sighed. “You’re not going to drop this, are you?”  
“Most definitely not. And before you make your decision, remember that Catra and I kind of saved the universe. Do you really want to disappoint us like this?”  
“...you can have suite six.”  
————————————————————  
The room was very basic, with a small bed, nightstand, and standard bathroom, all in neutral colors and bathed in fluorescent lighting. When Adora checked out the room, she came to the conclusion that it had everything one needed to have a successful delivery.   
But the bare minimum was all it had. And Adora had never been one to settle for the bare minimum.  
She placed their delivery bag next to the bed, ensuring that Catra would have easy access to things like snacks and a fresh change of clothes. She put a mini fridge in the room so there would be ice chips and popsicles at the ready. She placed a weighted blanket on the bed in the hopes it would provide her wife with some comfort and an exercise ball in the corner because she had read that bouncing on it would soothe the baby during labor and move the process along.  
She did a lot of things in an attempt to get that room ready, but her favorite part was when she taped to the wall each and every ultrasound picture they had of their little bundle of joy. To remind the couple what the end goal was here- bringing a beautiful, healthy baby into the world.  
Later that day, she brought Catra into the room to get her thoughts on it all.  
“If there’s anything else you want for in here, just say the word,” the blonde said to her wife as the brunette took in the set-up. “Your comfort is my top priority.”  
The part-feline just kissed her partner gently on the lips and whispered, “you just had to go overboard with the planning, didn’t you?”  
“Hey, I’ve always been that way. You knew what you were getting into when you decided to be with me.”  
“That I did,” she acknowledged. “And I don’t regret my decision one bit.”  
————————————————————  
That weekend, Adora laid on her stomach on top of her bed, watching her wife as she got dressed for the party. “I just want to take this moment to say that I find third-trimester Catra super attractive.”  
The brunette rolled her eyes, putting her hair up and out of her face. “You don’t have to butter me up. I’m actually pretty excited for the baby shower.”  
“I swear I’m not buttering you up,” the blonde insisted as she got up and put her arms around the love of her life. “But I’m excited for the shower too. It’s kind of incredible, y’know? All of these people are coming to celebrate a person that even isn’t here yet.”  
“I’m still not a hundred percent convinced this isn’t just some tradition they made-up so they princesses would have an excuse to eat more cake.”  
“Either way, I’m happy we’re doing it. I can’t wait till the day we can give our kid the birthday parties we never had growing up.”  
Catra smiled, picturing a young child looking exactly like Adora smiling widely up at her, their face covered in birthday cake. “Sounds like a dream come true.”  
————————————————————  
Catra was actually enjoying herself at this party. It was a quiet affair, filled with snacks and desserts, and the happy mingling of friends was the main focus of the event, not games or gifts.  
“I have to admit,” Lonnie started, grabbing a slice of cake from the table as she spoke, “I never imagined you having a baby, let alone being the one to carry it.”  
Catra shrugged. “For the longest time, neither could I. But a lot of things have changed for me these past few years, and I’m happier than I’ve ever been. It took me a long time, but I’ve finally realized that what I’ve always wanted to be with Adora, for the two of us to be together and a part of something bigger than ourselves.”  
Her former comrade quieted. “You ever think about how life would’ve turned out for us if we hadn’t grown up in the Horde?”  
“Sometimes. We definitely would have a lot less emotional baggage to deal with, that’s for sure. But being in the Horde gave me Adora. And it gave me you, Kyle, Rogelio, and Scorpia, even though I wasn’t able to recognize what a blessing that was until you all left. So all in all, I think it was a hard road worth taking.”  
“I know we don’t talk a lot, me and you. There’s a lot of crap that existed between us that I’m not sure we’ll ever be able to fully resolve. But I genuinely care about you and Adora, Catra. And I’m really happy for you two.”  
Suddenly, Scorpia approached the two, baby Flora on her hip. “Sorry to interrupt guys, but I’m just letting you know we’re heading out. It’s getting late and it’s almost bedtime for this one.”  
“Sounds good,” the brunette replied, momentarily taking Flora from her mother’s arms and rhetorically asking her, “can you say bye-bye to Auntie Catra?”  
The infant gave the woman a kiss on the cheek.  
“Wow Scorpia,” Catra said as she placed the child back into the part-scorpion’s waiting arms. “Your kid’s a genius.”  
Scorpia chuckled. “I’m pretty sure she didn’t understand a word you were saying and was just doing whatever she wanted to, but let’s go with the genius thing.”  
Once Scorpia and her family left, everyone else slowly followed suit and party came to an end, but Catra couldn’t shake the happy feeling this night had given her.   
“Your mom was right, kiddo,” the part-feline said to her unborn child, caressing her stomach as she spoke. “All of those people came here just to celebrate the sole fact that you exist. And they are going to be there for you your entire life. That’s a pretty special thing, isn’t it?”  
The baby kicked in agreement.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! I’m planning to do a small update mid-week where Adora and Catra see what kind of gifts people got them, so be on the lookout for that.


	14. I Knew It Was Worth It

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Catra and Adora open up some of the presents their friends gave them at the baby shower.

“Catra! Look at what Bow got for the baby!”  
The part-feline looked up to see her wife holding up a pink onesie. On it was an amateur sketch of the two of them and the words ‘my mommies saved the universe.’  
“I thought he told us the whole point of us having a baby shower was to get things we are going to actually really need?”  
“And he was right! Because we totally needed this!”  
The brunette rolled her eyes, though she couldn’t stop the smile that bloomed on her face. “At least Glimmer gave us some bottles to go along with that.”   
She then began to do inventory on the gifts, already panicking over all the Thank-you cards they’d have to write. “Mermista got us the ocean-themed binkies and rattles. Sea Hawk gave us the stroller, along with the insane promise to light a ship on fire in honor of our child on the day they’re born. Spinnerella and Netossa made the mobile...”  
“I think my favorite gift might be Entrapta’s,” Adora interrupted happily.  
“Really?” Catra pulled a newborn-sized spacesuit out of the purple bag. “You planning on taking our baby out into space?”  
“Not that one,” the blonde assured as she pulled out a strange-looking piece of tech. “I’m talking about this. I’ve been reading about these types of headphones. You put them on your baby bump and then the child can hear the music. Here, lift up your shirt and I can show you.”  
The part-feline at first resisted, claiming it was a ridiculous idea. However, at the sight of her wife pouting in sadness, Catra obliged.  
Eagerly, the First One set up the machine and started to play a familiar song, setting it to play once and then turn off.  
“Okay baby,” Adora said as she happily rubbed her wife’s stomach, “did you know that this is the song that played at my first Princess Prom? It was a long time ago, back when your Mommy was still pining over me and crashed events just to get my attention.”   
“I did not! Stop lying to our unborn child!”  
“I’m just trying to look out for them. It’s better that they know now that you have the serious hots for me.”  
“You know, you talk about our past as if I was the one doing all of the pining. You can not honestly say that you weren’t enjoying yourself at that dance. Especially that part where I dipped you.”  
“No comment.”  
The brunette slowly swayed to the music, noticing that the baby was kicking frantically now. “They seem to like listening to it.”  
“Yay! You never know, our kid could grow up to be a musical prodigy. Just like their mommy.”  
“I occasionally sing with Scorpia on karaoke nights. That does not make me a musical prodigy.”  
“Well I beg to differ.”  
The music came to end and Catra looked around the room, realizing something. “Hey babe, I think we haven’t opened what Perfuma and Scorpia got us.”  
“Huh, you’re right. Let me see if I can find it.”  
“I’m guessing the wrapping will be covered in flowers.”  
Sure enough, the box Adora pulled out of the pile had a floral design all over it. Together, the two of them tore it open and peaked inside.  
“Catra and Adora,” the part-feline began to read off of the note that had been placed on top of the gift, “we hope this helps keep your little one warm. Best wishes.”  
“They knitted a blanket for them,” the blonde commented as she held up the item. It that had all different hues of green running through it and was obviously made with a lot of time and care.  
“It looks like there’s a hat to go along with it. Even made little spots for their ears.”  
Adora began to fold the blanket back up, a soft smile on her face. “This was so sweet of them. Of all of them.”  
“Yeah.”  
“It’s an amazing feeling to know that our kid isn’t going to have to grow up the way did. There going to have it all- the play dates, the holidays, the days when they’re so embarrassed to even be seen with us.”  
“I wish I could’ve given things like that to you when we were younger,” her wife replied.  
“Well I get to experience those kinds of things now.”  
“I know, but it’s not the same. For a long time, our ‘home life’ was pretty crummy.”  
“It was,” Adora acknowledged before taking her wife in her arms. “But even back then, I knew it was worth it, because I knew that not everyone got to have a person as special as you right beside them. So I’ve got no complaints.”  
Catra purred in happiness as she gently brushed her wife’s hair out of her face. “Me neither.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! I still plan on uploading a chapter Saturday day night, though it’ll probably be short and centered on Catra’s birthday!


	15. It’s Your Birthday, That’s Why!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Adora plans something fun and casual for Catra’s birthday.

Catra let out a groan of discomfort from her side of the bed, causing Adora to immediately roll over and go into panic mode.  
“What’s going on? Are you having a contraction? How long have you been having contractions? Why didn’t you tell me you were having contractions!!??”  
“Relax Adora, I’m not in labor,” the part-feline assured. “Though it’s nice to know that when that time comes, you’ll be cool and collected.”  
“Then what’s-“  
“Melog.”  
“Oh.”  
At that moment, Melog became visible, purring softly as the cuddled up next to their companion, having plopped their paws and head directly on top of her huge stomach.  
Over the past few years, the two of them had developed a relationship similar to that of Adora and Swift Wind- the pair were inseparably linked, but they often spent time apart, finding joy and comfort in other areas of their lives. But lately, with the due date just being three weeks away, Melog had become rather clingy when it came to Catra, as if she knew the brunette was about to undergo something life-altering and wanted to be there for her.  
Catra stared down the magical being. “Do you always have to sit directly on my belly?”  
“They’re just excited for the baby to get here,” the blonde said, scratching Melog behind the ear. “And she’s doubly excited because she knows how important today is.”  
“Today is not important.”  
Adora gasped in fake horror. “It’s your birthday Catra!”  
“As I said, not important.”  
The First One raised an eyebrow. “Do you think my birthday is unimportant?”  
“That’s different-“  
“Are you going to say stuff like that when it’s our child’s birthday?”  
“Of course not.”  
“Well then you can’t say stuff like that about yourself then,” the current She-ra insisted rather sternly. “Every member of this family is just as equally important and deserves to have a special day that celebrates just how amazing they are.”  
“I’m tired and moody and my stomach looks like it’s just about ready to pop. I don’t exactly feel amazing and I definitely don’t feel like celebrating right now.”  
“First of all, even if you don’t feel amazing and beautiful, I can attest to the fact that you are. And second of all, I had a feeling you’d want to just lounge in bed today, so I have a plan.”  
As if on cue, a knock came from the door and Glimmers voice came through. “Are you guys decent?”  
Adora rolled her eyes. “I knew you were coming, Glimmer. Of course we’re decent.”  
“Sorry,” the queen said with a shrug as she entered the room with her husband, a silver platter in her hands. “I’ve walked in on you two unannounced before and I will never make that mistake again.”  
“Happy Birthday Catra!” Bow shouted, hopping onto the foot of their bed.  
It was then that Catra noticed that the pair were still in their pajamas, an unusual thing to witness when it came to the royal couple this late in the morning.  
“We’re taking the day off,” Glimmer explained once she noted her friend’s confusion. “My dad agreed to watch Ella, and he and the general can deal with anything Brightmoon-related for the day.”  
“But...why?”  
“Because it’s your birthday, that’s why!” the master archer exclaimed. “Adora figured you wouldn’t want a huge party this close to your due date, so she arranged for us to have a lazy day/sleepover. I brought some board games and our sleeping bags, I asked the kitchen staff to make us all of your favorite foods and snacks, and Glimmer even ordered a cake from a local bakery.”  
The sorceress took the top off the platter, presenting a round cake that wished Catra a “Happy Womb Evacuation Day” in chocolate frosting. “It’s cookie dough flavored, since Adora said that’s what you’ve been craving lately.”  
The brunette looked over to her wife and said “I guess this isn’t such a bad way to spend the day,” though the huge smile of her face and the happy colors that Melog was dawning showed her true feelings.  
The blonde smiled smugly as she kissed her partner on the forehead, pleased that her idea was a success. “Happy birthday beautiful.”  
“Okay,” the queen interrupted as she broke off a piece of the cake with her hands, “enough with the mushy stuff. Let’s have some cake!”  
“Glimmer, none of us have even had breakfast yet.”  
The woman stared at her husband, blinking. “And?”  
“Okay, fair point. Let’s dig in!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! 
> 
> So I wanted to talk about what’s going to happen when this work ends, as it’s only got a few more chapters to go. I plan on taking a break from regular updates on works and developing the next multi-chapter work I’m going to post. I have a lot of ideas, but the one I’m leaning towards doing right now is a modern AU that depicts Catra and Adora trying to become friends again (and maybe more) after several years apart. I know that’s a really popular trope in this ship, but I’m really excited to put my own spin on it!
> 
> Here’s to hoping that you’ll be pleased with the ending of this fic and continue to follow my works to come!


	16. Perks

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A cute little chapter to help distract me from the stress I’m dealing with.

“Why is this so entertaining to you?” Catra asked, laying in bed as her wife pressed onto her stomach, waiting for the baby to push back in reply.  
“Because this is one of the very few ways the baby and I can communicate with each other before they are born. I’m letting this little one know that I’m here for them, and they’re letting me know that the message is received.”  
“I think the message was received when you kept asking me if I needed anything a hundred times a day.”  
“You can never show love too many times.”  
“I’m sure my bruised organs would disagree.”  
“Fine,” Adora said as she pulled her hand away. “I’ll stop for today. I’ve got to demonstrate how much love I have for you anyway.”  
“Oh? And how do you plan to do that?”  
“I have a few ideas,” the blonde said playfully, reaching her hand into the bottom of her dresser draw, then excitedly pulling out lotion. “Foot massage! Along with chocolate-dipped strawberries.”  
Catra rolled her eyes, already moving to place her feet onto her partner’s lap. “You’re such a cheesy romantic, you know that right?”  
“I do in fact know that. I also know that you love it.”  
“It definitely has its perks.”  
Adora then looked to her wife with sincerity in her eyes. “I just want you to know that I really do appreciate everything you do for me, Catra. Not just carrying the baby, though that is something I’ll always be grateful for, but the way you make me feel loved and wanted.”  
“Trust me, the feeling is mutual.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know it’s short, but this was really all I could handle this week. I was super stressed about the election, the current move I’m experiencing, an upcoming procedure I have that might reveal I was misdiagnosed last year, and so much more. If you want to send me well-wishes, request any short fics for me to write, or commission a ko-fi from me (everything digital costs $5 and under), I think that help take my mind off of everything. No matter what, I’m just extremely happy that people even read my works and thank you for taking this journey with me.


	17. Cuddles and Warmth

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Melog slips into Adora and Catra’s room for midnight snuggles.

Melog gently nudged the door to Catra and Adora’s bedroom open, trying to make as little noise as possible. They knew that their companion had been having trouble sleeping lately and had no desire to wake her up unless absolutely necessary.   
The creature slowly made their way up and onto the bed, changing size so they fit perfectly in between the two women, purring in content at the feeling of warmth the saviors of the universe gave off.  
Melog could definitely sense the presence of the unborn baby inside Catra. She guessed being imprinted on one of the kitten’s parents allowed them that privilege, and it made them more inclined to check on the being from time to time. It seemed to be sleeping too, their heart rate calm and their movement minimal.  
This kid was going to come any day now, no doubt about it, and Melog knew that things were going to change drastically because of that. It looked like Catra knew that too, the woman seeming more anxious by the day.  
But the cat-like creature knew that it was all going to work out in the end, because she could sense Catra’s happiness at that fact, even if anxiety was mixed in there as well. They could tell how badly she wanted to be a mom, and if their companion wanted a baby, then so did Melog.  
Besides, it would be nice to have another person to cuddle with.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Had a busy week, so this will be the only update. But I think it all worked out because I enjoyed writing something from Melog’s perspective. Thanks for reading, you guys are awesome!


	18. We Will Be Enough

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Catra begins to show signs of labor, but also starts going frantic about what kind of parent she is going to be.

_One year and three months ago_  
Catra fidgeted with her hands as she sat on the familiar mat, her legs criss crossed. “Do I have to talk about it?”  
“You never have to talk about anything you don’t want to at our sessions,” Perfuma reminded her. “But I think it might be helpful to talk about it.”  
The brunette sighed. “Yeah, I suppose it would.”  
“I am ready whenever you are.”  
“...I’m in my room at night, just standing by the bed, watching Adora sleep. Everything seems normal, she has that goofy smile that appears whenever she’s having a good dream. It all seems perfect. But then she shows up to ruin it all.”  
“And who’s she?” the princess asks, though she has an idea about who it is.  
“I... it’s me. From right before I opened the portal, by the looks of it. I’m literally having some sort of psychotic episode, rambling on about how Adora is trying to trick me. That by agreeing to have a baby with her, I’m letting her get everything she’s ever wanted while having to do none of the hard work.”  
“Do you believe that’s what is happening in real life?”  
“At first I was scared that was the case, but I don’t think it is. I’m happy that I’m going to be a mom someday, and I was the one who brought up having kids and offering to be the one to carry them. Adora does want a family, but so do I, and I have confidence that she would never negate my feelings on something as big as this and I would never let her.”  
“And that’s something you should be very proud of. It’s obvious that you are actively improving your mental health and your communication skill.”  
“But these nightmares still keep on coming and they still upset me. And I think it’s because I’m so terrified of reverting back to the person I used to be.”  
“You had assumed that something like this would happen when you started mentioning the idea of having a baby,” Perfuma recalled. “Big changes tend to trigger that fear in you. Remember how you had the same overwhelming fear before you proposed to Adora? And the months leading up to marrying her?”  
“But this is different. If I had started acting that way to Adora, it would’ve hurt her a lot, but I know she could work through that pain. And if I refused to change, she could just leave me and find a new way to be happy. But a baby? A fragile, helpless infant that’s going to depend on me for everything? The way that I raise them could leave permanent scars and affect them for the rest of their life.  
“I know what you’re going to say, and I know that I’m not Shadow Weaver. But what if I’m like her in the ways that made her a terrible guardian? What if I make a mistake and my kid has to suffer the consequences?”  
“Catra, this may be difficult to hear but you are most certainly going to make mistakes, some of which will unintentionally hurt your child. Etheria knows I have, especially when the girls first came to live with me and Scorpia. But being perfect is not what makes someone a good parent. A good parent knows to listen to their child, to validate their feelings and apologize when they need to, to guide them with compassion and care. I see the way you do that with others now. I have no doubt that you and your family are going to be just fine.”  
Catra closed her eyes tightly, attempting to soothe her fears by breathing deeply. “I hope so.”  
————————————————————  
 _Present day_  
“Catra, please let me take you to the medical wing.”  
The brunette sighed heavily as she winced at the cramp-like contraction that was now overtaking her. ‘ _Come on kiddo,_ ’ she tried to telepathically urge her child, ‘ _can’t you just stay in there for a little longer_.’  
“I’m fine, Adora. I’ve still got a week left to go.”  
“You know as well as I do that a due date is just a best guess of when they’ll come. And you’ve been having contractions every twenty minutes for a while now.”  
The brunette looked over to her wife in disbelief. “You’ve been timing them?”  
“Of course I have. And this is starting to seem like it’s the real deal.”  
“And what if it is?” The woman snapped as she stroked her bump. “We just go and have a baby, pretending like we have any idea about what we’re getting ourselves in to?”  
“What are you trying to say?”  
“That I think you’re right- the baby’s coming. And that’s scaring me a lot more than I thought it would.” The part-feline looked up at her wife, her fear apparent. “I had another one of those dreams last night, and I can’t stop thinking about it. What if I mess this whole thing up? What if getting pregnant was a mistake?”  
“Well, you’re kind of in too deep to back out now,” the blonde said with a small smile as she wrapped her arms around her wife and unborn child. “And I guess we really don’t know what we are getting ourselves in to by having this baby. It’s not like we’ve ever been parents before. But we’ve been looking forward to this for so long- you’ve been looking forward to this for so long- and we’ve prepared ourselves as best as we could. So I don’t want you to worry about messing up. When this baby is born, we’re going to give it so much love and adoration that everything else is just going to fall into place.”  
“You’re always so infuriatingly optimistic,” the brunette said with an eye roll.  
“Not optimism,” the embodiment of She-ra insisted. “A reasonable deduction based on past experiences. Catra, it’s obvious to everyone how much you love this kid already, especially me. I see how you interact with them- how you talk to them, how concerned you are about their health, how you cradle your stomach even in your sleep. That’s not the mark of someone who’s going to ruin their child’s life.”  
“I would never do it on purpose.”  
“I know you wouldn’t. I can’t even see you doing it on accident really. Because you’re an amazing person Catra, and I this baby is going to look up to you in all the right ways.”  
The pregnant woman looked down at her bump. “It’s weird to think we could be meeting them within the next day or so. That is, if I am actually in labor.”  
“Well,” her wife said as she laced their fingers together, “why don’t we go find out?”  
————————————————————  
Adora slowly closed the door to the delivery suite behind her, trying to be as quiet as possible.  
“So?!” Glimmer shouted in excitement as she appeared with Bow at her side behind Adora, causing the blonde’s heart to stop momentarily.  
“Glimmer! You scared me half to death! And keep your voice down,” she ordered.  
“Is it true?” Bow asked quietly, his voice squeaking in excitement. “Is Catra in labor?”  
The First One smiled giddily. “She’s in labor, Amethyst just confirmed it. She’s only a few centimeters dialetd though, and her contractions are relatively far apart right now, so it was recommended that she try and rest as much as possible while she still can.”  
“She’s definitely going to need all of her strength,” the queen agreed.  
Adora nodded. “I’m going to go send a message to the alliance and make sure she has something to eat for when she wakes up. Melog’s with her right now, but if you guys wouldn’t mind checking in on her every once in a while, I’d really appreciate it.”  
“Of course we will. Whatever you guys need, we’re on it!”  
————————————————————  
“Scorpia,” Adora started with a smile as she spoke to the princess through her tablet. “You guys really don’t have to come. Catra and I know how busy you all are.”  
“Never to busy to meet Catradora jr.,” the woman insisted.  
“Catradora?”  
“You know, the ship name for you too. Anyway, the girls have school for the next few days, but we should be able to visit Brightmoon sometime this weekend. Which is probably for the best, gives you two some time to bond with the baby one-on-one. Unless you don’t want us to visit that soon, which would be completely understandable.”  
“It’s not that. I just don’t want you to feel like you have to come. It’s not like the baby is going anywhere, you can stop by whenever it’s a good time for you.”  
“We’ll stop by this weekend,” the part-scorpion stated with finality. “How’s Catra doing?”  
“A little scared. She had a rough night, and is kinda doubting herself. Right now it’s just a matter of waiting for the labor to progress, and you know how she hates waiting.”  
“Yeah, that’s Wildcat for you. But you seem a lot calmer than any of us had imagined you would be.”  
The First One sighed and ran her hands through her hair. “I’m trying to be. Every once in a while I’m overcome with this paralyzing fear that I’m going to say or do the wrong this and just make this whole situation worse for Catra. But I’m trying my best not to spiral into that train of thought. My family needs me right now.”  
“You’ve got nothing to worry about Adora, you’re doing amazing. Now go be with your wife. And one last thing.”  
“What is it?”  
“Congratulations. You’re going to be a mom.”  
The blonde eyes beamed with happiness at that statement. “I’m going to be a mom.”  
————————————————————  
Catra woke up from her nap with a shooting pain in her abdomen, a sign that the contractions were getting more severe. She tried to breathe through the pain, looking around the room for someone to comfort her. Melog was at her side, attentive as always, but where was...  
“Adora!” she called once she finally got the ability to speak back.  
The door opened, but on the other side of it was Glimmer and Bow, not her wife.  
“Catra? How are feeling?”  
“I’m in labor, Sparkles,” the part-feline replied bitterly. “How do you think I’m feeling?”  
“Fair point.”  
“Where’s Adora?”  
“She went to go get you something to eat,” Bow explained. “But I’m sure she’s around here somewhere.”  
“I don’t want her around here somewhere, I want her here,” she whined. “How long ago did she leave?”  
“A couple hours ago,” he said quietly.  
“Wait, what?!” Catra panicked.   
“Catra, Adora just wanted to let you rest while you still could and we’ll get her as soon as possible,” the sorceress tried to assure her. “And honestly, there isn’t much she can do right now to help.”  
“There’s plenty that she can do. She could tell me that everything is going to be okay and that I’m not a terrible person in her annoyingly optimistic way that somehow still works on me after all these years. She could hold my hand while these stupid contractions rip through my entire body. She could let me yell at her in frustration and just let it roll off her back, knowing it’s nothing personal. She could just plain be here! That would make all the difference in the world.”  
“That’s why I came back as quickly as I could,” Adora said as she walked into the room, a tray of food in hand, a look of concern covering her entire face.   
“Adora,” Catra breathed, suddenly relaxing a little. “What took you so long?”  
“I wanted you to sleep in peace for as long as you could,” the blonde replied as she sat the tray down and knelt by her wife’s side. “Plus I called all of our friends to let them know what was happening and they were all very eager to talk and make speculations about the baby.”  
“You are not leaving this room again,” the brunette growled.  
The First One kissed her hand. “Of course not. I’m going to be with you the whole way.”  
Bow’s eyes began to tear up as he watched the couple interact, turning to his wife. “This kind of brings you back to when Ella was born, huh Glimmer?”  
His wife scoffed. “Are you kidding me? You were freaking out the entire time.”  
————————————————————  
“How are you feeling now?” Adora asked her wife once their friends had left the room.  
“A little bit better now that you’re here.” Catra bit her lip and said in a low voice. “I just don’t want to be like her.”  
“You won’t be,” the blonde assured, not even needing verbal confirmation to know who the woman was talking about.  
“While there inside of me, I can protect them and let them know how much I love them. I’m scared that after the baby’s born I won’t have what it takes. I’m scared I won’t be enough.”  
“You don’t have to be- we will be enough. We’re going to raise this kid the way we do everything- together. That’s always been enough for everything else in our life. It’s going to be enough for this too.”  
“I hope you’re right.”  
“Well, I usually am.”  
“That’s debatable.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading, see you next week!


	19. A Little Bit Longer

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In the past and present, Adora worries she’s messing everything up.

One year and five months ago  
Perfuma had apparently decided that she’d just dive straight in with their session.  
“You still haven’t talked to Catra, have you?”  
“She knows I’m sad,” Adora replied. “But no, I haven’t talked to her in depth about it.”  
“You really should.”  
“I was going to, yesterday actually. But then she started to open up about how she feels like it’s her fault that we don’t have kids yet. Like this is the universe punishing her for being such a bad person all those years ago. I didn’t think me telling her how sad I am that we aren’t parents yet would make her feel better.”  
“There are ways you can approach the subject without making it seem like it’s Catra’s fault. She is your wife- the person you’re supposed to talk to about anything that’s bothering you.”  
“I thought that was your job.”  
“I can help you process your emotions and find peace, but I can’t be the kind of support system for you that Catra can.”  
“And that’s exactly why I don’t want to talk to her about this. These past few years, Catra has always been there for me when I needed her. She’s my everything, and I never want to make her feel bad.”  
“How would you like it if Catra kept something like this bottle up just for the sake of potentially sparing your feelings?”  
“Terrible. But this is different.”  
“Because it’s you?”  
“Yes! Its not Catra’s fault that I want to be a mom, or that I never thought I’d want something as much as I want this. And the thing is, I know that she feels the same way.”  
“Then why can’t you just talk to her?”  
The blonde sighed. “Because it’s my fault that we’re not pregnant.”  
Perfuma tilted her head, confused at how her friend could come to that conclusion. “How so?”  
“I put so much energy into being She-ra. I’m a lot better and managing my time and making myself a priority than I used to be, but it could be better. And what if the universe knows that? Knows that I wouldn’t be able to give a child all the care and devotion it deserves.”  
“Adora, this is not some sort of punishment designed to make you and Catra suffer. Lots of couples go through things like this, and it isn’t a reflection of who they are as people. You may have to wait a little bit longer than you would like, but it’s going to happen for you two. One day, you’re going to be a parent and it’s going to be the most exhausting and rewarding experience of your life.”  
The First One looked into her friend’s eyes, trying to ensure that she was sincere. “You really think so?”  
“You know, I really do.”  
“... I really want it.”  
“Then hold onto that feeling for just a little bit longer. Picture it.”  
Adora couldn’t help but smile at the idea of holding her kid in her arms, of watching them grow up.   
“It isn’t anything more than a dream,” she tried to argue.  
“But it makes you smile anyway.”  
“...yeah. It does.”  
“Just hold onto to that feeling for a little bit longer. Soon enough, it’s going to become a reality.”  
————————————————————  
Present day  
Adora couldn’t quite believe this was happening.  
She had waited so long for her and her wife to get pregnant, and then they had to wait nine months for their kid to be ready to come into the world. And here she was, watching Catra in her eighth hour of labor, her water having broken about halfway through, knowing that it was all about to come to an end soon enough.  
At the moment, the part-feline was on her hands and knees on the bed, attempting to take some of the pressure off of her spine, groaning in discomfort.   
Obviously, the blonde hated seeing the love of her life in pain, wishing with all her might that she could trade places with the brunette. And yet, seeing her be so strong and resilient as she endured the labor pains and subconsciously rubbing her stomach once they were over... well, Adora couldn’t help but think that there was no way she could love her wife any more than she did now.  
“Why are you looking at me like that?” Catra asked when she looked up to find her partner just staring at her with a goofy smile on her face.  
“It’s just,” the First One started, her eyes glistening, “Bow told me this would happen- that seeing you being so awe inspiring during this whole process would make me love you all the more. And he was so right. Stars Catra, you’re so beautiful.”  
The woman blinked a couple times before she started to yell. “Are you serious!? I’m going through what is without a doubt going to be the most painful experience of my life, and you’re just standing there thinking I’m beautiful!?”  
The part-feline got up from the bed and approached her wife, looking like she was about to strangle her. But suddenly all of her energy seemed to dissipate from her body, and she ended up just wrapping her arms around Adora’s neck, closing her eyes as she leaned in for support.  
The First One bit her lip as she started to gently sway the two of them side to side. “What can I do to help?”  
“Just...try to distract me,” the brunette breathed. “Talk to me about the baby or something.”  
Well, the First One could certainly do that.   
“I was thinking for their first birthday we could take them to Salineas,” she began. “Maybe spend the day at the beach building sandcastles and lying in the sun. And they’d be old enough to try some of the seafood they specialize in making.”  
“I do love their salmon.”  
“I know.”  
Catra continue to breathe deeply in an attempt to calm herself down. “Adora... I don’t think I can do this.”  
“You already are doing it, Catra. And you’re doing so well. I know this sucks right now, but I’m here for whatever you need.”  
“Okay, it’s honestly frustrating how calm you are about all of this. All along I thought you would be a basket case and I’d have to calm you down, which would help distract me from the pain.”  
The blonde raised an eyebrow. “So you want me to start freaking out?”  
“Maybe just a little. But don’t patronize me by faking one.”  
“Well I wouldn’t exactly be faking it,” Adora said in a small voice.  
“I knew it!” The brunette punched her wife’s shoulder hard.   
“Hey!”  
“You’re just as worried as I am and you’ve been hiding it from me!”  
“This isn’t supposed to be about me and how I’m feeling right now. And I’m not really worried about the same stuff you are.”  
“Then what are you worried about?”  
The First One blushed. “It’s stupid.”  
“Don’t care,” the woman grunted. “I’m going to support you just as much as you support me. Also, I’m about to start my next contraction and you’re babbling will act as a good distraction.”  
“Well when you put it like that,” the embodiment of She-ra quipped.   
“I just,” Adora started, “I guess I’m just worried that this is to good to be true. Like either it’s all a perfect dream that I’m going to wake up from or it’s real and I’m going to majorly screw it up somehow.”  
Catra waited a few minutes for her pain to subside before she spoke. “Why? Everything you’ve done so far has been generally helping, and you’re trying your best. Isn’t that enough?”  
“Not for you It isn’t.”  
“But it is. It so is Adora. You may not be able to take away my pain, but I’ll be fine. With you by my side, I always am.”  
“You know, you may not feel that way in little while.”  
“Oh I definitely won’t. So you just remember what I’m saying right now when that time comes, okay?”  
Her wife nodded. “Okay. I can do that.”  
————————————————————  
Less than an hour later, Amethyst came into the room and announced that Catra had dilated to six centimeters. She was officially in active labor.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this chapter is kind of short, but my minds been all over the place lately. I came out to my homophobic grandparents via text and I’m still waiting on their response. Wish me luck and thanks for reading!


	20. Never Seen A Sight So Beautiful

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Catra and Adora have their baby, and we see a little bit about what the other characters are up to.

“So Ella,” Glimmer cooed as she and her husband played with their daughter using building blocks, “are you excited to have a new friend?”  
The child clapped enthusiastically, gurgling in delight at the happy tone in her mother’s voice.  
“I think I’ll take that as a yes,” Bow chuckled. “Man, I can’t believe we’re finally getting a Best Friend Squad: Next Generation.”  
“I just hope history doesn’t repeat itself and Ella and the new baby could get along just as well as Catra and I did at first.”  
“Maybe, but then history would repeat itself even more and they’ll warm up to each other and be best of friends,” he singsonged in reply.  
“I guess we’ll just have to wait and see.”  
The master archer gave his wife a mischievous smile. “And maybe one day we’ll bring another squad member into the world.”  
“Bow, we talked about this. I want to wait until Ella’s at least three before we have another baby.”  
“I know, I know. But you have to admit, we make pretty cute kids.”  
The sorceress smiled as her infant happily smashes two blocks together, the spitting image of her father. “Yeah, we do.”  
“And creating a whole person, knowing that we get to love and raise them, isn’t it just magical? You can’t tell me it’s not magical.”  
Glimmer rolled her eyes. “Yeah, a state of pure bliss and wonder. I bet Catra’s having the time of her life right now.”  
————————————————————  
“I just want you to know how much I hate you right now,” Catra groaned as her latest contraction started to subside.  
Adora stroked her wife’s hair with her free hand, the other getting crushed under the brunette’s hold. “That’s fair.”  
“I knew childbirth would hurt, I’m not an idiot. But I didn’t think it would hurt this much.”  
“Catra, are you sure you don’t want any pain meds?”  
The part-feline sighed. “I promised myself I wouldn’t.”  
“But that was before you were enduring each and every contraction, and you’ve still got two more centimeters to go before you’re fully dilated. You’ve got to do what you’re most comfortable with.”  
Catra shakes her head. “I don’t want them. This is something I have to be in control of completely. I want to do this naturally.”  
The blonde nodded slowly. “If that’s what you want, then I support that decision one hundred percent.”  
“It is. Besides, the more pain I’m in, the longer I can hold this over our kid anytime they don’t listen to what I say,” she joked.   
“Yeah right,” Adora said with a roll of her eyes. “I have a feeling we’re both going to have a tough time putting our foot down with the little one. Me especially if they get your purr.”  
“You’re the one who’s going to pass down that puppy-dog face you know I can’t resist.”  
“Very true.”  
Catra bit her lip as she stared at her stomach. “I feel kind of guilty that we still don’t have a name yet, when they’re just hours away from being born.”  
“That’s not something we have to figure out right now. The comfort and safety of you two is all that matters,” the First One assured, though her mind was already going into meltdown mode as she imagined her child having a blank name on their birth certificate for all eternity.  
“Well we could always talk about some name ideas now, while this kid takes their sweet time getting he-“   
The brunette hissed as the beginning of another contraction worked it’s way through her entire body.  
Her wife leaned over and rubbed soothing circles all around her back. “They’re getting worse, aren’t they?”  
Catra just nodded violently.  
Once her body seemed to relax as well as it could, Adora asked, “do you want to try and sit on the exercise ball? I’ve heard that’s supposed to relax you and baby.”  
“Honestly, I’m willing to try anything at this point,” the part-feline said, already reaching for her partner’s aid in getting out of the bed.  
Carefully, the embodiment of She-ra helped her wife lower herself onto the round object, not letting go of her in case the woman lost her balance.  
The brunette groaned. “Adora, this is doing absolutely nothing.”  
“Probably because you need to do more than just sit on it. Here, let me.” She went around to the other side of Catra and placed her hands on the love of her life’s hips, gently starting to roll them back and forth and side to side.   
“Wow. That actually feels nice.”  
“I told you all those maternity books I read weren’t for nothing. Bouncing can also help too.”  
The two woman sat in silence for a minute, working together in an attempt to soothe the pregnant one’s pain.  
And then the next contraction hit.  
“Ugh!” Catra let out, a mix of frustration and panic evident in her voice.  
“Honey,” the blonde started, “it’s going to be okay. Just focus on the sound of my voice and your breathing. Do it with me- breathe in... now breathe out. You’re doing so great, sweetheart.”  
The second that she was able to talk, the woman went, “hey Adora?”  
“Yeah?”  
“Thank you.”  
The First One beamed with pride at the fact that she was actually helping.  
“But I still really hate you.”  
————————————————————  
Swift Wind tilted his head at the approaching creature. “They kicked you out, huh?”  
Melog grumbled in annoyed affirmation.  
“At least you got to be there at all. Apparently my birthing songs aren’t up to snuff. But I guess it’s for the best. Catra doesn’t seem like the time to be graceful under pressure.”  
The magical being growled.  
“Am I wrong?”  
No response came.  
“Just as I thought,” the winged unicorn said smugly.  
Then his expression turned serious. “Everything’s going to be so different after today isn’t it?” Without waiting for an answer, he continued talking. “Truth be told, things are already so much different. Adora’s been a lot less fun ever since the pregnancy was confirmed, going on about ‘responsibilities’ and ‘baby preparations.’  
“But...she’s also been a lot happier, and in the end, that’s all you can really ask for, isn’t it?”  
Melog purred at that statement.  
After a few moments of silence, the horse asked, “have they told you about the name yet? It’s gotta be Swift Wind jr., right?”  
————————————————————  
“So what am I supposed to do now?” Catra asked, her mind completely blanking at the announcement that she was fully dilated. It seemed as if everything she had ever read or been told about on the subject had suddenly flew out of her brain.  
“Honestly, that’s all up to you,” Amethyst explained. “I’d recommend you wait to push until you actually feel the urge to, though. First time deliveries are usually the longest, and the last thing we want is for you to overexert yourself before the baby is actually ready to be born.”   
“I think that ship has already set sail.”  
Adora placed a cool rag on her wife’s forehead. “Do you want Amethyst to stay in the room?”  
The part-feline shook her head. “Nah. I just want it to be us right now.”  
“Completely understandable,” the physician answered. “I’ll be nearby if you need anything, and I’ll come in to check on you every half an hour or so.”  
“I can’t believe we are at that point,” the blonde commented when the woman left, “where she’s checking on us that often. Think about it Catra, in like three hours or less, we are going to be holding a child in our arms.”  
“It better not be hours,” the brunette spat out as she felt another contraction begin to come upon her. “I don’t think I can make it that long.”  
“You’ve been doing amazing so far. And I’m going to be here for you with whatever you need.”  
Unable to speak, Catra just grabbed her wife’s hand a squeezed with all her might, grunting at just how painful this process had become.  
“You are definitely carrying any other children we have,” she said once the contraction subsided.  
“Whatever you want.”  
“I’m serious, Adora. I am not going through this torture again.”  
“I believe you Catra. Now what do you say we focus on you giving birth to this baby before we continue talking about having any others?”  
————————————————————  
“I finally got Flora to go to sleep,” Perfuma whispered ecstatically to her wife as she sat down next to her on the couch.  
“That’s great honey,” Scorpia said, continuing to stare at her blank tracker pad, waiting for it to light up with a message.  
“Sunflower, I doubt you’ll hear back from them anytime soon. The chances of Catra already having given birth to the baby are pretty slim.”  
The part-scorpion sighed. “I know. I’m just worried about Wildcat. A million things could go wrong during labor.”  
“That’s true, but a million things could also go right. And she’s got Adora by her side and a top-notch medical team at her disposal.”  
“I hope everything goes as smoothly as it can. She waited so long to get pregnant. Her and Adora really deserve this.”  
“They absolutely do,” the flower princess agreed as she cuddled up next to the love of her life. “I don’t think you need to worry, beautiful. I’ve got a feeling they are going to have a family almost as amazing as ours.”  
Scorpia raised an eyebrow. “Almost?”  
“Hey, I got the best spouse and kids in the universe fair and square. I can’t help it if no other family will ever measure up.”  
The woman with white hair tilted her head back in laughter, then placed a kiss on her wife’s forehead. “I love you, Perfuma.”  
“And I love you.”  
————————————————————  
“This is going nowhere!” Catra yelled as she collapsed back onto the mound of pillows at the head of the bed from the effort of pushing, an activity she had been at for almost an hour now.  
“I know it may seem like that but I swear Catra, you’re doing great,” Adora assured her wife as she knelt at the other end of the bed. “Do you want to take a break from pushing?”  
“No! Either way these contractions are coming every two minutes, I might as well use them to my advantage.”  
“Actually the contractions guide the baby down the birth canal no matter what, and maybe resting a little bit will actually be the best thing for yo-“  
“Oh for all the stars in the galaxy Adora, shut up!”  
That caused the blonde to be taken back a bit, but ultimately she was silent as per the request.  
The part-feline sighed. “I’m sorry. I know you’re just trying to help.”  
“It’s okay. I can’t imagine the amount of pain you’re in right now.”  
“I think that’s part of the problem. You know all these things about what’s happening and how to work through it, but I’m not exactly in a position to process all of that information, and that makes me even more frustrated then I already am.”  
“Yeah, we definitely don’t handle pain the same way,” the First One acknowledged. “Is there anything you want me to do instead?”  
“Can you just...talk to me? Tell me I’m doing a good job, even if you have to lie?”  
“Well I already know I definitely won’t have to do that.”  
When the next contraction hit, Adora did as she was told, gently vocalizing words of encouragement the whole way.   
You’re doing great Catra.  
You’re doing everything right.  
The baby and I love you so much.   
We’re so lucky to have you in our lives.  
This process continued several more times, contractions coming and going until finally-  
“Catra, I can see the head!”  
“Really? Are you sure?”  
“Yes! Just a couple more pushes and they’re going to be here.”  
That statement alone allowed the woman to use all of her remaining night to bear down once the urge to push hit her again.  
“The heads out, just a little bit more.”  
A minute later, the relative silence of the room was filled with a high-pitched sound that was almost a mix between mewling and crying. It was official- the baby was here.  
“How do they look?” the new mother immediately asked, trying to strain her neck to see what her wife was doing.  
“Honestly? A little gross,” the blonde said as she let out a breathy laugh and held up her child to her chest. “But he’s perfect.”  
Catra’s eyes glazed over with tears and she watched the woman she love cop over the infant in awe. “He?”  
Adora nodded. “It’s a boy.”  
————————————————————  
“It’s a boy! They’re finally here!” Bow was practically jumping up and down the hallway with happiness.  
Glimmer giggled at her husband’s excitement. Then she turned to Adora, asking, “And he’s okay? Catra too?”  
“They seemed to be,” the blonde responded. “Amethyst is doing a more thorough examination right now just to be safe, but she doesn’t suspect any issues will come up. Then we’re going to be transferred to a recovery room and we’ll probably be ready for you guys to stop by and see him in about two hours or so.”  
“Of course we’re stopping by,” the tech master exclaimed. “I can’t wait to meet the little fur ball!”  
“You keep saying him,” the queen commented. “Do you guys not have a name yet?”  
The embodiment of She-ra sighed. “Not yet. None of them seem good enough.”  
“Don’t worry,” the master archer replied, placing a hand on his friend’s shoulder, “you’ll find the right one. Now go on, Mommy, enjoy this moment with your wife and son.”  
The blonde couldn’t help but beam at that sentence as she walked towards the direction of the medical wing. Son. She and Catra had a son, and they were moms now.   
Mommy, that’s what Bow had called her. It was a title she would now wear every hour of every day for the rest of her life, just like with She-ra.   
But this job felt so much more sacred and extraordinary. And even though she had only be at it for a minuscule amount of time, Adora could already tell that being a mother was going to be much more fulfilling to her than being a warrior princess ever could.  
————————————————————  
“I really wish I had gotten the chance to decorate this room too,” Adora commented as she looked around the room and took in it’s sterile atmosphere.  
“We’re not staying here long,” Catra reminded her wife. “And besides, I think we have something much more important to focus on at the present moment.”  
The blonde smiled giddily. “That is true,” she said, looking down into the bassinet at her partner’s bedside. A bassinet That currently housed her newborn child.  
The infant boy squirmed a little in an effort to get comfortable, their tail flicking back and forth and their ears twitching at the slightest sound.  
He certainly was a healthy baby, weighing in at just under eight pounds and measuring twenty inches. The child’s complexion seemed to match their birth mother, with hair her exact same shade and a skin tone just a little bit lighter than hers. But he definitely took after Adora in features and storm blue eyes color.  
The First One had never seen a sight so beautiful.  
“So what do you think?” Catra asked after her wife had stared at the baby for a long while. “Is he a keeper?”  
“I certainly think he is.”  
“Well that’s good. Means I didn’t go through labor for nothing.”  
“It’d be nice if we had a name though,” the First One commented.  
“About that... I think I found one while you were away, talking with Bow and Glimmer.”  
She immediately perked up at that statement. “I’m all ears.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I’m still struggling with the name a little bit. I was planning to do an epilogue about Catradora’s first year of parenthood anyway and I’m just going to incorporate it into that. I’m definitely open to any suggestions and really hope you liked this chapter!
> 
> So I heard back from my grandparents. They say they love me and want me to be happy, but I could tell by the wording in the text message they left that they don’t approve of me being who I am. I had always known that, and that’s just another thing I’m going to have to navigate through.
> 
> Thanks for reading and I hope to see you next week for the final chapter!


	21. The Best Team

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Glimpses of Catra and Adora’s life throughout their child’s first year.

Catra slowly opened her eyes as she woke up from the nap that had seemed to do nothing for her. As happy as she was that her son was finally here, labor had been an exhausting process that had drained all of her energy. The brunette honestly just wanted to close her eyes again and sleep for a whole week.  
But when she looked to her right and saw Adora sitting at her bedside, smiling like an idiot and holding their baby, she thought to herself that maybe staying awake right now wouldn’t be so bad.  
“Hey beautiful,” her wife whispered gently once she noticed that Catra was awake. “How are you feeling?”  
“Sore and tired beyond belief. But also really happy.”  
The First One’s eyes sparkled. “I’m really happy too. Listen, there’s so people who want to see you and the baby, but only if you’re up for it.”  
“Sparkles and Arrow Bow have been around for practically every major milestone in our life together. I don’t see why they wouldn’t be for this one too.”  
“There not the only ones visiting,” the embodiment of She-ra said slyly, getting up and opening the door.  
“Hey Wildcat,” the princess said as she walked into the room.  
“Scorpia?” The part-feline asked, wondering if she was hallucinating. “How’d you get here? Adora said you and Perfuma wouldn’t be stoping by until the weekend.”  
“That was the plan,” the woman acknowledged, “but Glimmer knew how much I wanted to be here for you, so she offered to teleport me to Brightmoon and back.”  
The new mother looked over in the corner to see the queen and her husband standing in the doorway.  
“I guess you’re not all that bad Sparkles,” Catra called out to her as a way of giving her thanks.  
“Don’t go soft on me Horde Scum,” the sorceress said, approaching her friend.  
“Say Scorpia.” Adora walked right up to the part-scorpion, still holding the newborn baby. “Do you want to be the first one to hold him?”  
“Really?” The white-haired female looked back and forth between the new parents. “Can I?”  
She received multiple nods and a sleepy baby was placed in her waiting arms.  
“Hey there, Wildkitten,” Scorpia cooedas she swayed back and forth with the child, “man, you are a cutie. And tiny too. But I’ve got a feeling you’re one of the most loved beings in the entire universe.”  
After about ten minutes or so of her doting on the baby, the part-scorpion passed the child over to Bow.  
Who immediately started crying.  
“He’s just,” the master archer sniffled, “so cute. Glimmer, look at those ears!”  
“Yes Bow,” the queen laughed lightly, “I see them.”  
“We should totally have another baby!”  
The woman sighed and gave a glare to Catra. “Why’d your child have to give him baby fever?”  
“I think that was something that was going to happen no matter what, Sparkles.”  
“Well, maybe if you tell us the baby’s name, that’ll calm him down a little bit. Have you come up with one yet?”  
Adora smiled brightly and took her wife’s hand. “We most certainly have.”  
“Everyone,” the brunette started, “meet Ezra.”  
————————————————————  
“Bow, please stop crying.”  
Bow choked back even more sobs. “That’s the most adorable name I’ve ever heard.”  
————————————————————  
“Here comes the magical spaceship,” Adora cooed as she brought the spoon closer to her target’s mouth.  
“What are you doing?” Catra growled, pushing the food away from her face. Her eyes were heavy from lack of sleep and her brain had no patience for her wife’s antics. “Last time I checked I could feed myself.”  
“Well, of course you can do it, but this way I get to help out with meal time. You feed baby,” the blonde started, nodding to her currently nursing son, who had only entered the world three weeks ago, “and I feed you.”  
“That’s ridiculous.”  
“I prefer the term endearing. Now open wide.”  
The part-feline sighed and took a bite of the food, knowing it was the only to get her wife to stop. As she swallowed down the applesauce, her stomach began to growl, and she realized just how hungry she was.  
“Dang,” the brunette said. “I think that was the first bite of food I’ve had all day.”  
“It was- I’ve been keeping track.”  
“And you’re not mad?”  
“Oh no, I am,” the First One insisted as she gave her wife another spoonful. “But I’m trying not to be. I know you aren’t doing it on purpose.”  
“It just feels so wrong to do other things besides look after Ezra, even the necessities. It kills me every time I hear him cry.”  
“It kills me too, y’know.”  
“I know. But it feels like you do better at pushing past it.”  
“Only because making my needs a priority is something I’ve really been working on these past years. It makes sense that it’s something I pay close attention to.”  
The brunette sighed. “Sometimes I wish that we had more of a routine going. That he could sleep longer and I could take a shower, or even just catch my breath. And that makes me feel like a terrible person.”  
“You aren’t. You have needs too, Catra, and meeting those needs can only be good for Ezra.  
“Sweetie, I get why you aren’t focusing a lot on yourself right now. At this stage, everything we do is supposed to be for the baby, and I understand that some things are bound to slip through the cracks. But one of those things can’t be our physical and mental wellbeing.”  
The woman nodded in agreement. “Okay.”  
“Okay. Now that he’s done feeding, I’m going to take Ezra out for a stroll around the palace gardens, and you’re going to take some time for yourself.”  
“Adora, you really don’t have to,” the mother assured as she started to button up her shirt, “I wasn’t trying to get you to leave with him.”  
“I know you weren’t. In all honesty, I’m doing this for selfish reasons. I want some one on one time with my son. Go on, do something for yourself, love. You can join us later if you’re still up for it.”  
“Are you sure?”  
“Positive. You look out for me and I look out for you, that’s what makes us a great team.”  
Catra smiled. “The best team.”  
————————————————————  
“I’m sorry I haven’t been coming here lately,” Catra started. “It’s just, with the pregnancy and all, getting out here was a lot more taxing then it used to be, especially going alone.  
“I know that if I told Adora about this, she’d happily go as much as I wanted to. But I know being here makes her sad, and I honestly like the fact that I get to talk to you all by myself- that I can speak freely and apologize for all the terrible things I did to you.”  
The statue of Queen Angella loomed over her as always, as if even the image of her in stone demanded respect. But it didn’t invoke a bad feeling the way Shadow Weaver’s presence had. In fact, her warm smile and kind eyes seemed to bring peace to the brunette.  
At times it was hard to look at her smile, considering Catra was the reason she’d never get to smile in real life again. But still she came and talked to her monument as often as she could, in hopes that Angella was somehow listening.  
“Ella learned the word ‘grandpa’ recently,” the part-feline continued. “Micah was absolutely thrilled and wouldn’t stop showering her with praises for hours. It wouldn’t surprise me if soon she starts saying ‘grandma’ as well. We all talk about you, y’know. So she knows just how amazing you are. And Ezra too. I know he isn’t biologically related to you, but Micah sure treats him like he does,” the part-feline snorted.  
Catra then got a serious expression on her face. “Adora’s been such a good mother these past few months. It’s almost like she was made for it. Me, on the other hand... well, I’m trying my best, but it’s definitely harder than it looks. I can’t imagine how hard it was to raise a child like Glimmer,” she said, trying to imagine a Sparkles that was even more rambunctious then she was now.  
“Adora keeps telling me that in the years she was under your care, she was loved and learned a lot about what it means to be a parent. Much more than she ever with Shadow Weaver. And I can never express how grateful I am to you for that. Not just because she’s the mother of my child, but because she deserves all the love she can get. And I’m sorry that I took that presence away from her and everyone else. I’m sorry that I did that to them, but I’m even more sorry that I took away your chance to be here with them.”  
Catra bit her lip in nervousness. “I hope you know that I’m never going to let her forget about you- let any of them forget about you. If I could, I would bring you back. But Entrapta says that at least for the time being, that’s not possible. So the least I can do is make sure you’re here in spirit.”  
Just as she was about to leave, the brunette noticed a shooting star dance across the sky. She smiled, liking the idea that it was Angella letting her know that wherever she was, she was watching over them.  
————————————————————  
“Peekaboo!” Bow gasped as he drew his hands away from his eyes. “I see you!”  
Both Ezra and Ella squealed in delight, excited at the game their father and babysitter were playing.  
The master archer sighed with content as he watched the children giggle and awe as he alternated between playing peekaboo and blowing bubbles in their direction. “Can I always hang out with guys? It’s a lot more fun to play with you two than sit in the boring meetings your mothers are in right now.”   
When it playtime was over, the man prepared Ezra his bottle and gave Ella a snack to tide her over for dinner, but she was more interested in offering it all up to her playmate, one cereal bit at a time.  
“Sweetie, Ezra can’t eat that yet, so you don’t have to give those to him,” Bow tried to explain. “That’s all your food.”  
“Share Daddy!” the little girl insisted.  
That statement made the tech master melt right on the spot. Stars, he loved being a Dad and Uncle.  
————————————————————  
“Remind me again why we were so excited for Ezra to start crawling?” Catra asked as she scooped up her child before he tumbled right off of their bed, placing him on the floor in front of her and distracting him with his favorite toy, a plush teddy bear.  
“I think we were so excited at the fact that he’s developing that we forgot all the dangers that come with it,” Adora reasoned  
“Not to mention the exhaustion. It feels all like he does is zoom around the entire palace.”  
“And we have to chase after him. I can’t imagine what it’s gonna be like when he starts walking. Or climbing things like you do.”  
“Oh Eternia no. I’m praying that your clumsiness offsets any feline traits he could’ve gotten from me.”  
“Hey! I’m plenty agile and flexible.”  
“You literally tripped over nothing yesterday.”  
“I told you, the floor was uneven!”  
————————————————————  
“Mind if I do this next part on my own?” Adora said looking to her wife, their baby strapped to her in a harness.  
Catra smiled softly. “Go ahead.”  
Quietly, the blonde made her way to the statue ahead of her- the one that included every single person on Etheria whose life had been lost during the war. There were a lot of names, far too many of them, but Adora came here often to try to connect with one person in particular.  
“Hey Mara.”  
The woman smiled softly and stroked the top of her child’s head. “You remember Ezra, right? Well, he’s nine months old today and I guess part of me just wanted to bring him by to say and get to know you, at least as much as he can with him being a baby and you being gone and all.”  
She received no response in return. She never did. And yet, the mother always came here whenever she had the chance, wanting to show her gratitude for her predecessor.  
“You know that I’ve always admired the sacrifices you made for Etheria and the universe as a whole,” the blonde started, “but I think it took me becoming a wife and mother to truly understand what you gave up. It wasn’t just your life, but all the paths your life could’ve taken had you lived.”  
Adora felt the baby against her chest mewl and squirm, trying to bury themselves into her neck as much as he could.  
The woman smiled at her son’s antics. “I see so much of Catra in him. He loves to scratch and chase after things, but he also loves to snuggle up to me and treats me like I’m his safe place. It’s the most magical part of my day, when it’s just him and I reading a book together before bed. The way he purrs and swishes his tail slowly, his breath becoming slow and rhythmic. It’s times like that when I’m reminded just how much I love being his mother, and you gave that to me Mara. Everything I have, you played a part in me having it.  
“You never got to get married or have kids. You were under so much pressure you probably never even got to figure out if that’s what you wanted. And there’s no way I could ever repay you for making that kind of sacrifice. But I promise that I’ll do whatever I can to keep the universe safe and let my family know how much I love them everyday.”  
Catra slowly approached, placing a hand on her wife’s shoulder. “She’d be so proud of you. You know that, right?”  
The current She-ra nodded, tears streaming down her face. “I do. And I’ve gotten to a point in my life where I can be proud of myself too. Proud of us.”  
“I love you Adora.”  
“I love you too, Catra.”  
————————————————————  
“Happy birthday dear Ezra, happy birthday to you!”  
Knowing that their son couldn’t yet blow out the candles on the small cake, Catra and Adora did it for him as all of their friends- their family- cheered around them.  
“Mermista, thank you for letting us have the party at Salineas,” the blonde told the princess as she sat a thick slice of cake in front of her child, who proceeded to smash his face into it.  
“Yeah well,” Mermista drawled, “it’s hard to say no to a face as cute as Ezra’s. Even if one of his mothers can be a major brat.”  
Catra nonchalantly replied, “right back at you, water princess.”   
“So,” Sea Hawk started in a voice loud enough to silence the whole room, a lit torch in his hand. “When are we going to set some ships on fire?”  
“Yeah, this isn’t that kind of party,” Adora said, a little concerned at the way Ezra was staring at the open flame. “But we are planning to head down for the beach in a little bit and play.”  
And that’s exactly what they did. The members of the alliance played volleyball and took turns surfing the waves. Perfuma and Scorpia played tag with the children, helping them build sand castles once they were tired out from that. Bow and Glimmer relaxed on their beach towels, feeling the warmth that enveloped their skin, Ella napping under an umbrella nearby.  
And then their was Catra and Adora sitting at the edge of the water with their son, letting incoming waves tickled his feet. They hunted for seashells together as a family, vowing to take the prettiest ones back to Brightmoon as a keepsake. When it got darker and cooler in the afternoon, the huddled around a bonfire and sang songs, Adora once again worried at Ezra’s fascination with fire.  
The day had been perfect, just like the child they were blessed with.  
————————————————————  
“I think giving Ezra his piece of cake before we played outside was definitely a smart move,” Catra said as she crawled into bed with her wife. “Curbed some of the sugar rush.”  
“Told you,” Adora mumbled, barely even opening her eyes. “Man, I’m tired. Today was fun, but it’s the kind of fun that drains you, y’know?”  
The brunette mumbled an acknowledgement, wondering if this was really the right time to bring up the thing she had been thinking about nonstop for a whole month.  
The blonde’s voice pulled her from her thoughts. “Did the kiddo get to sleep okay?”   
“Oh, yeah, he did. Just told him a story and he was out like a light?”  
“Let me guess, the one where we kiss and save the universe?”  
“Not my fault he keeps demanding to hear that particular one over and over again.”  
“He can’t even speak yet.”  
“Well excuse me for wanting our child to know where he comes from.”  
After a few moments of silence, Catra returned to her thoughts. Why was she so scared to talk to Adora about this? They had both said it was what they wanted, and as far as she knew, neither of them had changed their minds about it. Besides, they had gotten into such a comfortable routine with Ezra, he had brought so much joy and happiness into their lives.  
Would it be so bad to have another baby?  
The part-feline couldn’t take it anymore. She needed to know if they were on the same page.  
“It’s hard to believe one year ago today I had just given birth.”  
“I know. Feels like centuries ago.”  
“I can’t ever imagine my life without Ezra. He’s grown so much over the past year and I loved every second of it.”  
“I remember you not being so thrilled at all the times he threw up on you, but I get your point. I feel the same way.”  
“Really? Cause I was thinking-“  
“Catra, I know what you’re going to say, and I’m sorry. But honestly, I’m way too tired tonight to have the ‘should we start trying to get pregnant again?’ discussion.”  
“Oh,” the woman let out as she sunk into the bed, disappointed. “Okay, yeah. That’s fair.”  
After a few moments of awkward silence, Adora said, “but I’d be willing to have that conversation soon.”  
The brunette’s ears perked up at that. “Soon?”  
“Mhm. Really soon.”  
Catra snuggled close to her partner, content with that answer.   
Soon.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not sure how anyone else will feel about the name Ezra, but I like it. Thanks for reading this work, so weird it’s finally completed, but I’m proud that I stuck to it and updated every week. Hope to see you guys in my future endeavors!

**Author's Note:**

> I’ve been meaning to start this completely self-indulgent work and I finally did it! This is my first big work that will have a steady, linear timeline, so all kudos and comments are welcome, as is constructive criticism, especially if anything you see in my story raises a red flag with you (unintended misgendering, racist stereotypes, ableism, etc.)- the whole point of me writing regularly is to grow, so don’t feel bad about correcting me on anything.  
> And now, for the shameless self-promotion portion of our everning. This is the link to my ko-fi (https://ko-fi.com/avatarabby). I accept donations as well as commissions for different forms of art- stories, sticker sheets, digital drawings, and so much more! Feel free to check it out, even if it is just to see my ridiculously cute dog, who serves as my icon. Thanks for reading, hope to see you next week!


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